The ^ 
Vital Question 



OR 



How To Get Real Democracy 
In The United States 



By 
WILLIAM N. OSGOOD 



"When all shoot at one mark, the gods 
join in the combat." — EMERSON. 




Published by 

THE PEOPLE'S SERVICE LEAGUE 

Tremont Building, Boston 



<i 



COPYRIGHT 1917 

by 

WILLIAM N. OSGOOD 



DEC 26 1917 



©CI.A479674 



ANNOUNCEMENT 

All profits received from the sale of this book will be 
used to advance world democracy during the war, and 
at its close to advance real democracy in the United 
States. 

THE AUTHOR. 

Price in cloth, $1.00. 

Price in paper, 50c. 



E. L. GRIMES CO., Printers, Boston 



CONTENTS 

Introduction page 7 

Chapter I. The People's Cause, or the So- 
called Labor Problem page 12 

Chapter II. Direct Legislation page 22 

Chapter III. Trusts, Combinations and Ef- 
fects on Prices and Labor .... page 37 

Chapter IV. Equable Taxation page 41 

Chapter V. Public Ownership of Public 

Utilities page 56 

Chapter VI. Scientific Management page 66 

Chapter VII. Woman Suffrage page 88 

Chapter VIII. Additional Remedies page 101 

Chapter IX. A Suggested Practical Plan 

of Action page 104 

Chapter X. Conclusion page in 



INTRODUCTION 

AT the time I am putting this question, What can 
you do? to both the reader and myself, to estab- 
lish a genuine and permanent democracy, our beloved 
nation has been forced into the most terrible and 
gigantic war of all history. Most willingly and heartily 
do we offer our vast resources, moral and physical, in 
aid of justice and an outraged humanity. As one man 
we are convinced that militarism and desire of con- 
quest for mere glory and acquisition must be de- 
stroyed. We are determined that the foes of genuine 
popular government must be so chastened by an 
aroused civilization that their deeds shall not again 
encumber and mar the pages of history. 

Democracy in some perfected and refined form is 
as certain to color the future policies of all great na- 
tions, as militarism and autocracy are to be crushed by 
the present world conflict. 

The writer assumes from present indications that the 
war will soon end, and that truth and right according 
to our vision will prevail. While the war lasts, our 
supreme duty will be to do all in our power to preserve 
the integrity of our country. 

Nevertheless, it may be opportune to observe that in 
time of war prepare for peace. Enforce war while it 
lasts by all the enginery and contrivances of war, but 
do not neglect to prepare the way for the permanent 
blessings of peace for our people after the war. 

Therefore, assuming that the victory for humanity 
is assured by the grand concerted action of the liberty- 
loving nations of the world, let me repeat the question, 
What can you do, — what can the American people do, 
to make real democracy permanent? 



8 THE VITAL QUESTION 

This question which has intensely presented itself to 
every thoughtful and patriotic citizen during the war, 
becomes vastly more difficult to answer during the ap- 
proaching time of peace. In time of war, the answer 
at once suggests itself to sacrifice body and posses- 
sions for the preservation of our country and its insti- 
tutions. While one may be willing to do even this 
in time of peace for the welfare of his fellow men and 
of future generations, still, he would be unwilling to 
make such a sacrifice rashly and unwisely, uninformed' 
as to the nature and extent of service thereby ren- 
dered. 

Thousands, yes, millions of persons in the United 
States are anxious to render valuable service to their 
fellow-men and women, in the amelioration of their 
economic and social conditions, and yet do not know 
just what to do, or how to proceed. 

It is not enough to tell such persons that govern- 
ment for, by and of the people is the best government. 
That means little to them without further elucidation. 
You may tell them they have that kind of government 
now. They may not deny it, but they know you are 
not speaking the truth. They read the newspapers 
and the magazines and they know that the country is 
not in fact governed by the people, but by those who 
have acquired special privileges, and are busily en- 
gaged in devising refined methods for exploiting the 
public. To the question, what can we do? we are told 
to do nothing, and that everything will work out all 
right in the end. It is about time that the persons 
asking the question should answer it themselves, and 
insist upon an accounting by those who are responsible 
for present economic conditions. 

In a state of peace, what each can do in rendering 
valuable service to his fellow-men can best be deter- 
mined by his vocation in life. If he is a preacher he can 
serve them best by caring for their spiritual welfare. 



THE VITAL QUESTION ' 9 

It would be demanding too much of such a person to 
expect him to tell his parishioners how to love their 
neighbors as themselves. That perhaps requires too 
much worldly knowledge and experience and should 
be left to others. I once heard a celebrated divine 
preach for one full hour upon the two great command- 
ments. He spent forty-five minutes upon the first and 
fifteen minutes upon the second. He made no attempt 
to tell how to love our neighbors. This must sooner 
or later be answered by laymen if unanswerable by the 
preacher. 

The great problem of civilization, comprehensively 
stated, is how to increase the opportunity for all men 
and women to improve their religious, economic, so- 
cial and even artistic well-being. The world has be- 
come too commercial and materialistic. It should be- 
come more creative and productive of those things that 
elevate the soul, educate the mind and heart, improve 
the general and physical condition of the citizen. 

A monetary cast or class is being too rapidly formed 
in this land of ours. What a man possesses of this 
world's goods too commonly determines his standing 
in the community. "How much is he worth?" is be- 
coming of vastly more importance than "What is he?" 
or "What does he believe and know and what are his 
sentiments and capabilities in relation to lightening the 
burdens of his neighbors?" 

What each can best do after due consideration and 
introspection must be decided by himself. 

It may be argued with force that it is in vain for an 
individual to attempt the solution of great political and 
economic questions, acting alone, and that it would be 
folly to expect any tangible results while so acting. 
Such an individual should first of all assist in organiz- 
ing those about him, who sincerely desire to render 
valuable service to their fellow-men. 

Public opinion when ascertained is the great dom- 



IO THE VITAL QUESTION 

inating power in our political life, and is vastly more 
important than any form of governmental machinery. 
Public opinion is formed by various forces, such as the 
press }> public meetings, and various other educative in- 
fluences. The potency of public opinion, when crystal- 
lized, is wonderfully effective. Public opinion, for illus- 
tration, for a long time told President Wilson to keep 
us out of the war, and, like a true representative and a 
servant of the people, and not a self-appointed leader, he 
bowed to its mandate and deferred a declaration of 
war. Almost in a day public opinion changed, because 
the people, unable longer to endure the outrages and 
insults heaped upon their country, loudly demanded 
war. The President obeyed the behest of public opin- 
ion with alacrity, besought the assistance of Congress, 
and war was promptly declared. In a democracy 
there can be no higher mandate than that of public 
opinion, a real public opinion, not an imaginary or fan- 
ciful one, but one that is based upon mature and delib- 
erate consideration by the people as a whole. It must, 
of course, be so overwhelming in its manifestation that 
it cannot be mistaken or misinterpreted, and such 
manifestations not infrequently in the past have hap- 
pened when we refused to debate further about the 
subject matters involved. 

Assistance in moulding and forming public opinion 
becomes, therefore, an exceedingly valuable public ser- 
vice whose consequences may be far-reaching even if 
indiscernible. When the individual citizen asks what 
he can do towards forming public opinion, the answer 
may be given that he should do all he can to organize 
those who hold the same convictions concerning public 
welfare that he does, and above all strive to convince 
them of the urgent necessity of political action, in order 
to secure the enactment into law of those measures 
which will give greater freedom and^protection of op- 
portunity in the various activities of life, and curb the 



THE VITAL QUESTION n 

power of those who would appropriate or destroy op- 
portunity. 

Public opinion is to be first won. Then the task o£ 
securing concrete action by the governing powers be- 
comes an easy one. The first service, therefore, to be 
performed by each of us is to do all in his or her power to 
enlighten the electorate concerning the most impor- 
tant public questions, and then through concerted 
action, by means of proper organizations, compel action 
by the law-making department of our government. 

The following pages contain the writer's contribu- 
tion as to what can be done in the forming of public 
opinion. He will first deal with some of the specific 
subjects for political, social and economic improvement, 
and will then suggest a plan of organization, which may 
be employed in bringing together in any locality those 
who hold similar sentiments and views upon matters of 
public concern. 



CHAPTER I. 

The People's Cause, or the So-Called Labor Problem. 

It is certain, that rule by the people in varying de- 
grees of perfection is bound at the close of the war to 
be extended more and more widely throughout the 
world. The battle now being fought in the conflict of 
arms is but a battle between democracy on the one 
side, and autocracy and militarism upon the other. At 
the termination of that war the nations of the earth, 
as never before, will engage in intense but friendly 
rivalry to prove that democracy can be based upon 
foundations more enduring and just than those of im- 
perialism, and be in the long run even more efficient 
and economical than those of a potent autocracy. 

Popular government in the future will be more than 
a mere form of government. Its essence, justice and 
equal opportunity to live and to enjoy life, will find ex- 
pression in concrete remedies and laws. Its machinery 
must be workable and results must prove its wisdom 
and prosperity, all things considered, over all other 
forms of government. 

We in the United States, as individual citizens, 
should discharge the great and peculiar duty we owe to 
mankind, to make our so-called experiment in democ- 
racy so successful that it will be studied and copied by 
other nations. We have already done much in the 
direction of popular government but there still remains 
much for us to do. Our mistakes and failures of the 
past must be corrected. We must pay more serious 
attention to the welfare of all useful and desirable per- 
sons in the community, and to the abolition of special 
privilege. The old threadbare phrases "equal rights 



THE VITAL QUESTION 13 

for all and special privileges to none" must be literally 
reduced to concrete law, and not used merely to adorn 
speech. 

Kossuth, the justly famous Hungarian exile, who, 
two generations ago, thrilled American audiences with 
his impassioned oratory in behalf of liberty, said 
shortly before his death, "It is clear that the social, in- 
dustrial question surmounts all others. Society is sick 
of a malady that defies cure. The progress of civiliza- 
tion has given the great mass of people desires which 
were once confined to the few, and each workingman 
today regards as necessaries what his predecessor con- 
sidered luxuries. So-called socialism will not cure the 
sickness. The weak will always go down before the 
strong. Monarchy will not cure the malady. Mon- 
archy is going down all over the world, and republi- 
canism is coming up. The monarchical principle is 
not extending itself, while the principle of republican- 
ism is gaining ground, as the recent change of govern- 
ment in Brazil shows. But republicanism will not cure 
the malady, for is there not in America the nearest pos- 
sible approach to a real republic, with an enfranchised 
democracy, free education and popular institutions? 
Still America has this social malady. There seems to 
be no remedy. Meanwhile the earth will continue to 
revolve, and some day the present population may be 
swept from its surface, and a new race more capable 
of a new civilization may appear." This was said by 
Kossuth before the destruction of the South African 
republics by Great Britain, and the acquisition and 
control of the Philippines by the United States, and the 
spread of popular ideas of government in China, and 
I may add the Great War of 1914, in which, sad to 
relate, his native land was upon the side of imperial- 
ism. 

Such was the sombre and melancholy view of this 
great patriot and champion of human rights, It is not 



I 4 THE VITAL QUESTION 

to be wondered at, that even Kossuth in the eventide 
of his life should have been discouraged because of the 
ignorance of men, and their indisposition to organize 
and to devise and apply the proper remedies for eradi- 
cating the final vestiges of tyranny and oppression, 
that had their birth in the dark ages. When he 
lamented that there was no cure for these wrongs, we 
must remember that he was about passing from the 
stage of life, and that where he left off others as able 
and conscientious stand ready to begin, with full faith 
that many steps forward in the grand march of human 
progress are about to be taken. 

Force alone should not dictate governmental policy. 
Might cannot make right. It matters little whether 
the force used is the physical force of absolute despot- 
ism, or whether it is the refined mental force of men 
who are skilful in inventing schemes for the corruption 
of legislatures. 

The struggle which manifests itself today in the 
United States is the old story attired in new language. 
It is the old battle of the people against a privileged 
few. In ancient times, the contest was between the 
people and absolute kings, feudal lords, a titled nobil- 
ity, or a military dictatorship. The power against 
which the people must now wage battle is an aristoc- 
racy of monopolists, or plutocracy, if you choose. 
Wealth and luxury are excellent things in themselves, 
yet we do not want a select few exclusively to enjoy 
and control them. The more of the good things of 
this life each one has to a certain extent, the better it 
is, or ought to be for the general welfare. 

The first step to be taken is to place man where he 
belongs, above mere riches. Do not legislate first for 
the dollar and then for the man. The inanimate and 
feelingless dollar ought never to occupy a position 
higher than the being who hopes for immortality. 
Neither should man be subjected to the same law as 



THE VITAL QUESTION 15 

the inferior animals — that the weak must yield to the 
strong. 

Any aristocracy of wealth, title, office or military 
power cannot long receive the sanction of the Ameri- 
can people. All such are repugnant to the true spirit 
of our institutions. Any power or aristocracy which 
has for its end the invasion of our political or industrial 
liberty, will sooner or later be destroyed by a justly in- 
dignant people. The only aristocracy which the Amer- 
ican people will ever respect or long tolerate is a true 
aristocracy, composed of the best citizens of the nation, 
best in intellect, best in heart, and unswervingly de- 
voted to the real advancement and progress of the en- 
tire community. 

The people's contest is not to be permanently waged 
between labor and capital, between which there is arid 
can be no natural antagonism, but by a coalition of 
labor and legitimate capital against a common enemy — 
monopoly. By this I mean monopoly of franchises 
and functions that properly belong to the people, and 
also monopoly of every other kind and description, that 
tends to obstruct and impede the free and fair play of 
those natural economic laws which if left alone would 
bring prosperity, and plenty to all prudent and indus- 
trious persons. 

In order to discuss intelligently the relationship of 
labor and capital to each other, it is necessary to agree 
at the outset, if possible, upon correct definitions of la- 
borers and capitalists. Who are laborers and who are 
capitalists? My answer is that over ninety per cent, of 
our population are both laborers and capitalists. They 
differ from each other only in degree. 

After some reflection, I have arrived at the conclu- 
sion that everyone engaged in a useful occupation is a 
laborer amd a capitalist. It makes no difference 
whether a man projects a vast railroad system across 
the continent, erects houses, builds bridges, engineers 



l6 THE VITAL QUESTION 

canals, tunnels mountains, illuminates cities, surveys 
the bottom of the ocean for naval warfare or for the 
purpose of marrying the two hemispheres with bands 
of iron, preaches, teaches, sells dry goods or flour, or 
digs gravel, he is, in the true sense a laborer so long as 
his occupation is honorable and useful in adding to 
the comforts of his fellowmen. The man who con- 
tributes the most good to mankind is he, who is the 
most useful, and he is in strictness the greatest laborer. 
No greater labor can be performed than is sometimes 
performed by self-sacrificing men and women, who are 
ready and willing to spend their fortunes and their 
lives in the cause of humanity. Who can be greater 
laborers than Wilberforce, Garrison, Phillips, Sumner, 
Lincoln, Tolstoi and the rest who were impelled by the 
sublimest motives of self-sacrifice, and those noble men 
and women of our times who stand ready to devote 
their fortunes and their lives to the uplifting of human- 
ity and the securing of social, economic and industrial 
justice? The person who leads a useless life, like a 
gambler is not a laborer in any good sense, whether 
he gambles in legislative grants, in gilded halls of lux- 
ury at Monte Carlo, or in the secluded haunts of vice 
and infamy. 

On the other hand, everyone engaged in a useful 
occupation is also, in a measure, a capitalist. One 
may possess many millions of dollars, while another 
may have only the breakfast in his stomach, or the 
dinner in his pail, or the hoe in his hands — yet both 
are capitalists. The one merely has more capital or 
wealth stored up or reserved than the other. The one 
may receive as wages a thousand dollars an hour the 
year around, and the other may receive only ninety 
cents or a dollar for ten or eleven hours' work and find 
employment but a part of the year — yet both are labor- 
ers — only one gets more than he earns, and the other 
gets less, or has no chance to earn what he ought to 



THE VITAL QUESTION 17 

earn, or even the skill or ability to find or make oppor- 
tunities for himself. 

The tyranny which we should at all times and 
places be prepared to denounce is the tyranny of the 
big laborer over the small laborer, the tyranny of the 
big- capitalist or monopolist with special privileges over 
the small capitalist, the tyranny of the millionaire over 
the laborer with only the breakfast in his stomach for 
his capital, the tyranny of the large and lordly 
owners of thousands of acres of fertile land with untold 
treasures both above and below its surface, over the 
struggling small farmers and producers of the coun- 
try, the tyranny of the large and extensive manufac- 
turers over the small manufacturers, the tyranny of the 
princely merchants over the shopkeepers of small 
means; in fine, the tyranny of every name and nature 
which holds mere wealth in higher esteem than men — 
which holds the railroads, the magnificent edifices of our 
cities, or the stately ships as greater in importance 
than the image of God. Man made all these from ma- 
terials supplied by nature. Can the created be greater 
than the creator? Can manufactured articles be greater 
than the owner of the hands which fashioned them? 

One of the principal obstacles to a speedy solution 
of the labor problem, so called, is the popular miscon- 
ception as to who are the laborers. The clerk at the 
counter, the banker at his desk; the merchant in his 
store, do not consider themselves laborers. The labor 
problem they do not think concerns them in the least. 
A graver blunder could not be made. The labor prob- 
lem is but another expression for the people's prob- 
lem. As I said before, everyone engaged in a useful 
occupation is a laborer, and is equally interested in a 
correct solution of our problem, whatever his social of 
vocational position may be. 

We often pride ourselves upon the representative 
character of our government, as though every class in 



18 THE VITAL QUESTION 

the community were fairly represented in it. The 
theory of our form of government is excellent. Yet, 
are the actual producers, the useful citizens or laborers 
and moderate owners of capital justly represented in 
our legislative bodies? Are the middle classes, for ex- 
ample, adequately represented in the upper branch of 
Congress? Why do the people not rush in large num- 
bers to Congress and demand special legislation? 
Their enemies do. Is it not because they think they 
can attend to and manage their own affairs quite well 
without any assistance from the government? But what 
takes place in their absence from the halls of legisla- 
tion? Hydra-headed monopoly, ever on the alert, 
crawls in. The railroad magnates, the iron and coal 
barons, the princely owners of vast portions of the soil, 
form a clamorous horde of genuine paupers and men- 
dicants for special favors. They infest the halls of "leg- 
islation with their insatiable demands for recognition 
and plunder. They are not greedy or selfish. Oh, 
no ! They merely want to obtain public assistance in 
conducting their private businesses so that they may 
assume guardianship over the dear people, as though 
the people could not take care of themselves if others 
would only let them alone. When any class of our 
citizens besiege our representatives, the theoretical* 
servants of the people, and secure from them power 
which enables them to rob us, we feel tempted to say 
that a people who will tamely submit to such treachery 
on the part of their representatives, ought to be robbed 
and enslaved. It requires no prophet to declare that 
they will continue to be robbed and enslaved, as long as 
they neglect to organize themselves, and elect as lead- 
ers those who believe in real and genuine popular gov- 
ernment. 

Jay Gould said, "If labor and capital are left to 
themselves, they will bring about a satisfactory adjust- 
ment." A most wise observation if they are left to 



THE VITAL QUESTION 19 

themselves. That is the identical thing we are fight- 
ing for. And when we shall succeed in bringing about 
the free and normal relations of labor and capital, our 
task will be accomplished. But when large and exces- 
sive capital secures special privileges unto itself, to levy 
unjust taxes and exact unjust tribute from the people; 
when it secures valuable corporate franchises without 
paying the people for them and then charges the people 
excessively for using their own property; when it ob- 
tains corruptly through legislative action lands of im- 
mense value without rendering any equivalent for the 
same; when monopolies in general are permitted to 
wield sufficient power and strength to crush out any 
formidable rivals, even to starving an honest inventor 
and forcing him through expensive and long litigation, 
and, perhaps, for a mere trifle, to part with the fruits 
of long and weary days and nights of severe toil and 
study; when trusts, combinations and immense aggre- 
gations of capital are allowed to shut up mills and 
throw thousands of employees out of work without no- 
tice, then, Mr. Gould, labor and capital are not left to 
themselves. 

In a word, the aim of labor, or of the people, just as 
you prefer, should be to ascertain the most efficacious 
means of increasing the burdens of dangerous monop- 
olies, and decreasing the burdens of the industrious 
poor and those in moderate circumstances. For it is a 
notorious fact that those of special privilege escape 
bearing the public burdens they ought to bear, and 
that the poor bear directly and indirectly more than 
their just share of those burdens. We must embarrass 
the monopolist and encourage and assist the honest, 
thrifty and industrious man who is battling for an ex- 
istence to gain a mastery over the reasonable comforts 
and even reasonable luxuries of life. 

Upon this great issue of the age we must take sides. 
The logic of events so compels us. There is no es- 



20 THE VITAL QUESTION 

cape. Either we must serve the monopolist or the com- 
mon people. We cannot serve both masters, for 
either we "will hate the one and love the other, or else 
will hold to the one, and despise the other." 

Is there any doubt of the existence of a people's 
cause, or a labor problem, when men and women 
greedily grasp the charitable wages that are handed 
them by the captains of industry who think they are 
conferring a rich boon upon humanity by giving em- 
ployment to any one? Why should men and women be. 
compelled to rush like so many animals jostling each 
other to seize an opportunity to support life, just as 
though God and nature gave life and neglected to pro- 
vide amply for its maintenance? Why should it be nec- 
essary for wives and children to enter our unwholesome 
factories and compete with men? If they are forced 
by poverty and want to do the same work as men by 
means of some labor-saving machine, why in the namei 
of fair play shouldn't they receive the wages of men? 
Why should children of tender years be obliged to 
compete with their fathers and therefore reduce the 
fathers' wages, when they ought to be at school or 
romping in the fields? This system is doubly censur- 
able, for wherever it is tolerated, the combined earn- 
ings of the father, mother and children are scarcely 
adequate to support the family, and in but few instances 
exceed the wages which should be paid to an able- 
bodied and industrious man working eight hours a day. 

The first task to which we should devote ourselves, is, 
to awaken, more and more public thought and interest 
in our cause. This can be done only through persist- 
ent and united effort. No matter how much men may 
differ in regard to remedies, let them all turn their 
footsteps in the same direction and march forward to- 
gether. The common destination is the land of Truth. 
Let there be no stragglers, no deserters. Let all drown 
individual opinions and differences in the undisputed 



THE VITAL QUESTION 21 

conclusion that all monopoly, or special privilege, is an 
implacable foe that must not only be defeated but an- 
nihilated. It should not be treated with. No com- 
promise, should be the answer to all overtures of mo- 
nopoly. 



CHAPTER II. 
Direct Legislation. 

The strong need no champions. Monopolies need 
no friends. They are independent, self-reliant, and 
often defiant, being conscious of their strength. One 
hundred millions of dollars are naturally strong, be- 
cause naturally organized. The interest of each dollar 
is identical with the interest of every other dollar, and 
they work together in obedience to an inexorable law. 
One hundred millions of liberty loving people with in- 
dependent and individual interests are naturally dis- 
organized and consequently weak under present condi- 
tions. It is only when their few common and collec- 
tive rights are assailed or threatened, that they arti- 
ficially organize, so to speak, and seek to overthrow 
their oppressors. When the liberties of the American 
people are endangered by any power, we must expect 
sooner or later to witness some organized action on 
their part against such a power. That such action is 
about to be taken is evidenced on every hand. 

In the present chapter, I shall attempt to show that 
direct legislation by the people, the initiative, the refer- 
endum and the recall, is consistent with the true spirit 
of our institutions and affords the best, and perhaps 
the only means for successfully coping with the ene- 
mies of the public welfare. 

"I do not love the word people," said Bacon the 
philosopher. "The public be blanked," exclaims Van- 
derbilt, the practical business man. Democracy can- 
not exist anywhere in the world, according to Machia- 
velli, and the despairing Kossuth, whose words are 
quoted above. 



THE VITAL QUESTION 23 

A United States Senator said, not many years ago, 
"I am not afraid to say to the American people that} 
it is dangerous to trust any great power of government 
to their direct or inconsiderate control." 

On the other hand, nature cast Jefferson, Lincoln 
and Phillips in a different mould, and they never hesi- 
tated to express unbounded confidence in the people's 
ability to manage their own affairs. 

Mr. Gladstone declared in 1892: "The classes of leis- 
ure, the educated classes, the titled and wealthy 
classes have always been in the wrong." 

John Morley has written: "The best part of the 
working classes are most fitted for political influence in 
the community." 

"Everybody is cleverer than anybody," said Talley- 
rand. Paul preached "of one blood are all people." 
Abraham Lincoln was a sincere believer in the people. 
Contrast his position with the United States Senator 
who is obliged to summon all his courage so as to be 
in a condition to say: "I am not afraid to tell the 
people that I do not trust them." Theodore Parker in 
one of his addresses made use of the following lan- 
guage: "Democracy is direct self- government over all 
the people, for all the people, by all the people." A 
copy of this address, according to Mr. Coffin, fell into 
the hands of Mr. Lincoln long before he was thought 
of as a presidential candidate, and Mr. Lincoln drew a 
heavy pencil mark around the above sentence of Mr. 
Parker's, which he subsequently paraphrased in his 
brief but immortal oration at Gettysburg. 

Thus, we have two kinds of men of unquestioned 
eminence and ability holding diametrically opposed 
views concerning the people. Which is right? Which 
is wrong? This problem has troubled those who have 
gone before us and must be solved by us. The politi- 
cal tendency of the times is unquestionably towards a 
bestowal of greater power upon the people. 



24 THE VITAL QUESTION 

I start with this proposition, that if a person believes 
in the people he will favor direct legislation by them; 
and if he distrusts them he will oppose their direct con- 
trol of the laws. 

Let me ask those who distrust the people and their 
ability to govern themselves, when have the people 
ever betrayed themselves when numerically strong or 
voluntarily placed themselves in any position from which 
they might not extricate themselves and correct their 
mistakes? When did they ever rebel against them- 
selves? Have the great revolutions by the people been 
against themselves? Have they overturned govern- 
ments because they possessed too much power or be- 
cause they were granted too few political privileges and 
immunities? Were they not at such times demanding 
more power? It is absurd to claim that the people, any 
more than individuals, would wittingly act against 
their own interests. De Tocqueville wrote: "Extreme 
democracy prevents the dangers of democracy." 

It is well known that the people have been rash and 
precipitate only against aristocracies of various kinds, 
which deemed themselves divinely entrusted with au- 
thority to administer government for others — and 
themselves. Some of our modern political leaders 
seem to be imbued with a similar idea which they have 
not the courage "to confess. 

No, the people are not dissatisfied because they pos- 
sess too great power, but rather because they possess 
too little power and demand more. It may be true, 
however, that the more power they gain the more they 
will desire. That is natural and just. It is right that 
the people should strive for all the power they can get, 
because, under our theory of government, the most ad- 
vanced and advancing theory is that all political 
power springs from them and by right is theirs. 

The sovereignty of the government is admitted by 
us all to be in the people. Therefore, their title to the 



THE VITAL QUESTION 25 

sovereignty is superior to that arrogated by any por- 
tion of the community, and if it has been taken away 
from them, or even delegated by them, they have a 
right to demand its restoration. 

What is direct legislation by the people and what is 
aimed at by its advocates? It is simply to give back to 
the people what belongs to them and what has been 
carelessly given away by them, or unjustly exercised 
by their representatives. No objection is raised by 
those in favor of direct legislation to the form of our 
government. On the contrary, the representative, or 
republican, form of government must be perfected and 
preserved. The mistake was originally made in dele- 
gating the sovereignty to "agents" and "substitutes" of 
the people for a period which intervened between elec- 
tion days. The sovereignty should remain at all times 
where it belongs, in the keeping of the people, and 
they should have the right at all times to exercise it, 
if need be, in certain well-defined legislative matters. 
If the agents or representatives of the people, as they 
are presumed to be, were invariably capable, faithful 
and patriotic they would do better than the people 
themselves. But representatives are human and liable 
to be more devoted to themselves and special interests 
than to the people, and are frequently too susceptible 
to influences opposed to the public welfare. 

Mr. Bryce in his "American Commonwealth" is of the 
opinion that it is so difficult for us to secure able and 
honest representatives that he encourages an exten- 
sion of direct legislation by the people, which he ob- 
serves acts in American politics as a "bridle and bit" 
and not as a "spur," that is, that popular action is con- 
servative and prevents more evil than it causes. 

Von Holtz remarks that the consciousness on the 
part of the American people that they are the ultimate 
repository of the sovereignty, even under their present 



26 THE VITAL QUESTION 

limited right of direct action, serves to hinder revolu- 
tions and popular uprisings. 

The advocates of direct legislation believe that the 
people have committed a grievous mistake in delegat- 
ing to representatives even a temporary right to the 
entire sovereignty; that a sufficient part of the sover- 
eignty should at all times be retained by the people 
themselves, to enable them to enact laws for their own 
benefit and defeat the passage of laws framed against 
the public weal, or designed to serve merely private or 
special interests; that the people should have not only 
the right to petition, but the power to compel action 
upon their petitions; in fine, that the people at all 
times should assume the right to propose proper laws, 
that is, laws not urgent but important, and the right 
to veto such laws by appealing from the acts of their 
representatives to a popular vote. 

It is certain that direct legislation by the people will 
deal a death blow to the lobby, and destroy the cor- 
rupting influences upon legislation of political rings 
and those seeking special privileges. 

It is not claimed that the people should directly leg- 
islate upon matters of great and immediate urgency, 
but that they should directly legislate upon matters not 
urgent but, nevertheless, important, as intimated above. 
Mistakes made by some communities where direct leg- 
islation has been adopted were due to attempts on the 
part of the people to vote concerning unimportant and 
trivial matters, under very crude and impracticable 
schemes of direct legislation. 

Under a well-matured system of direct legislation, 
many hasty and ill-considered measures would never 
become laws, for the reason that legislators would hes- 
itate to favor bad laws, being cognizant that their acts 
were being constantly scrutinized and subject to popu- 
lar disapproval and amendment. The people would 
not officiously interfere with the work of their repre- 






THE VITAL QUESTION 27 

sentatives. On the contrary, they would concern 
themselves with only important and far-reaching public 
questions not requiring immediate legislative action, 
like appropriations for current expenses of state, and 
unusual sanitary and police exigencies. The existence 
of monopolies would be rendered impossible, the ex- 
treme bitterness of partizanship would disappear, the 
highest political independence would be encouraged, 
and the highest patriotism would be fostered. Our 
government would then become in fact, as well as in 
theory, a government by the people. All persons who 
believe in particular reforms should co-operate in secur- 
ing direct legislation even if they are unable to work 
together for any other purpose, for, in no other way can 
they secure a possible expression of the people con- 
cerning such reforms. If the majority of the people 
look with favor upon any special reform, it will be in- 
corporated into our laws. If they look with disfavor 
upon it, its advocates may seek a reversal of public 
opinion or abandon their cause as hopeless. At any 
rate, all will have to abide by the ultimate popular ver- 
dict, as they should in a truly democratic country. 

The idea of direct legislation, especially in local and 
even state public affairs, is by no means an untried or 
novel one in the United States. A great deal has been 
written concerning the initiative and referendum of 
Switzerland, and we are supposed by many to be imi- 
tators of that country in respect to direct legislation. 
While Switzerland affords an excellent and convincing 
illustration of the practicability of our plan, and has 
carried it to a high state of perfection in actual appli- 
cation, still it need not be said that we are imitators 
or followers of the Swiss. We may be said to be imi- 
tators or followers of the Swiss Republic only because 
our history happened to begin at a period later than 
hers. The idea of direct legislation by the people is in 
complete harmony with the spirit of our own laws. 



28 THE VITAL QUESTION 

What examples of direct legislation by the people 
have we in this country? The town meeting is indeed 
the most familiar one. The manner of conducting our 
town meetings is too well known to require a detailed 
description. The voters assemble and directly propose, 
discuss, pass and defeat local measures. Our critics 
will say that is true and the system works well in small 
communities, but why do towns when they attain a 
considerable size almost invariably petition the Legis- 
lature for city charters? The answer is, that the meet- 
ings become large and unwieldy — yes, unwieldy by 
those who usually want to control the affairs of the 
town. Then, again, a great many are seemingly fasci- 
nated with the notion of living in a city. The large 
taxpayers in a mixed community favor the change from, 
a town government to a city government, because they 
can have more influence with the latter. The transi- 
tion is natural and exemplifies the progress of political 
evolution common to all growing communities. Yet, 
some towns decline to make the change, because a 
large majority of the citizens may be wealthy and en- 
lightened and may be depended upon to directly con- 
trol public affairs in their own interests. Such com- 
munities instead of furnishing an argument against 
direct legislation in reality endorse it. 

What occurs after the acceptance of a common city 
charter, the last direct action, by the way, of the voters 
in purely local matters? A form of government is se- 
cured that is removed from the direct control of the 
people, subject to comparatively easy political manipu- 
lation, until we have the problem of correct municipal 
government presented to us. 

The great mistake in the past was made in granting 
and accepting city charters which practically remove 
from the voters the right to directly control the affairs 
of the newly made municipalities. Note, I say tha 
right to control the affairs of the city. By this, I do 



THE VITAL QUESTION 29 

not mean that the citizens should literally manage and 
direct every detail of legislation, for then there would 
be nothing gained by the change from the town meet- 
ing, but that they should have the option, if so disposed, 
to propose measures which must be acted upon and 
to veto bad measures passed by their city councils. 

Those powers never should have been surrendered 
by the inhabitants of the towns, but should have been 
expressly reserved in the city charters to them and 
their successors. That this view is correct is proven 
by the adoption by over one hundred American cities 
of new charters which have incorporated in them not 
only the initiative and referendum but also the recall 
of city officials. 

The Constitution of Massachusetts contains the fol- 
lowing provision: 

"The people have a right in an orderly and peace- 
able manner to assemble and consult upon the common 
good; give instructions to their representatives and to 
request of the legislative body by the way of addresses, 
petitions or remonstrances redress of the wrongs done 
them, and of the grievances they suffer." 

Many of the Constitutions of the several States con- 
tain similar provisions. 

The right to assemble, to consult, to give instruc- 
tions to representatives and to request action of them, 
to petition and remonstrate, are insignificant rights and 
totally inadequate, if the servants of the people are not 
compelled to listen and obey. 

Perhaps, indeed, the fathers thought the representa- 
tives would heed public opinion without being forced 
to heed it. Their times, however, were not our times. 

There is no express provision in the Massachusetts 
Constitution, which I use merely for illustration, allow- 
ing the people to demand action upon their petitions 
or a right to appeal from legislative acts. This seems 
at first thought to have been an almost unpardonable 



30 THE VITAL QUESTION 

oversight on the part of the framers of the Constitu- 
tion, especially when it is provided in that instrument 
that, "All power residing originally in the people and 
being derived from them, the several magistrates and 
officers of government, vested with authority, whether 
legislative, executive, or judicial, are their substitutes 
and agents and are at all times accountable to them." 

This language is unequivocal and proves conclusively 
that the sovereignty was in spirit, at least, to reside 
at all times in the people. Still, there is no provision 
made for making the said "substitutes and agents" at 
"all times accountable" to the people. The most prob- 
able explanation of this omission on the part of the 
framers is that they did not deem it necessary to make 
such a provision, not dreaming that the "agents" of 
the people would ever abuse or betray, to any serious 
degree, the confidence reposed in them. They had 
no thought of the great corporate interests, the enor- 
mous and powerful railway systems, the great variety 
of corporations made possible by the application of elec- 
tricity, the thousand and one trusts that are the prod- 
ucts of our modern commercial and social conditions, 
sending their tools to the halls of legislation to obey 
their mandates. 

The lot of the framers was cast in a different period, 
when political and commercial life and methods were 
comparatively simple, and public officials were person- 
ally well known to the citizens. 

The only provision in the Massachusetts Constitu 
tion which suggests a remedy for dealing with 
"agents" who betray the people, is this: "In order to 
prevent those who are vested with authority from be- 
coming oppressors, the people have a right at such 
periods and in such manner as they shall establish by 
the frame of their government, to cause their public 
officers to return to private life, and to fill up vacant 
places by certain regular elections and appointments 



THE VITAL QUESTION 31 

That is, if the representatives become oppressors, re- 
tire them to private life. Not one word occurs in ref- 
erence to undoing or preventing their acts of oppres- 
sion. There is nothing said about restoring or for- 
bidding the giving away of sovereign rights to corpo- 
rations and monopolies. 

The Constitution of Massachusetts provides that gov- 
ernment is instituted for the people and not for any one 
man, family or class of men. No mention is made of 
monopolies, corporations and trusts. The fathers were 
unacquainted with such things or they would have re- 
ferred to them. 

Let us not be too cynical concerning the framers. 
We admire the general excellence and perfection of 
their work and must remember that they builded ac- 
cording to the wisdom which they had for the condi- 
tions which confronted them. May we display an 
equal or even an approximate wisdom in regard to the 4 
problems which are presented to us. 1 

The only provision in the Massachusetts Constitu- 
tion looking towards direct legislation by the people 
relates to the adoption of amendments to the Consti- 
tution — a kind of referendum. The people do not di- 
rectly propose these amendments. They must be pro- 
posed in the General Court or Legislature, passed by 
that body, and by the one next chosen, and "then it 
shall be the duty of the General Court" to submit such 
amendments to a popular vote. If a majority of the 
votes cast at an election held for such purpose are in 
favor of the amendments, then without further action 
they become parts of the Constitution. I have taken 
the Massachusetts Constitution merely for illustration. 
The same observations may be made in reference to 
similar provisions in the constitutions of many other 
States. 

The local right to vote upon a question of granting 
liquor licenses is another example of direct legislation 



32 THE VITAL QUESTION 

long possessed by the people in many towns and cities. 
Many States permit popular votes upon such subjects 
as appropriations for specified purposes, location of 
public buildings, purchase of lands, education, etc. 

I have purposely refrained from examining in detail 
the Swiss initiative and referendum, for the reason that 
direct legislation is in perfect consonance with our in- 
stitutions, and has been decided by the Supreme Court 
of the United States to be compatible with a republi- 
can form of government, and that the Swiss system has 
already been admirably described by many well known 
writers who have furnished us full and complete ac- 
counts of legislation by the people of Switzerland. The 
works of these writers should be studied by those who 
wish to become familiar with what others have done 
for true democracy, and who entertain no doubt con- 
cerning the practicability of direct legislation enjoyed 
by three millions of liberty-loving people, who have 
been going forward and not backward. History is 
being made so rapidly at the present day in many of 
our municipalities and States in relation to the adoption 
of the initiative, referendum and recall, that I need but 
refer you to such municipalities and States for ample 
data concerning the successful operation of direct leg- 
islation in our very midst. To the critics of the theory 
of direct legislation by the people, it is only necessary 
to point to its great growth throughout the United 
States and ask them to point to any instances of repeal 
of direct legislation where adopted, or even to any con- 
siderable agitation anywhere for such repeal. It may 
be well to note at this point that in addition to the 
numerous American cities above referred to, eighteen 
States have already adopted direct legislation. These 
States are North Dakota, South Dakota, Oregon, 
Maryland, Montana, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Maine, 
Michigan, Missouri, Nevada, Arkansas, New Mexico, 
Colorado, Ohio, Arizona, Washington and California. 



THE VITAL QUESTION 33 

Direct legislation is now pending in many other States 
for popular endorsement, having been passed by Legis- 
latures or constitutional conventions. Among such 
States are Idaho, Wyoming, Mississippi, Wisconsin, 
Massachusetts, and possibly some others. The reform 
is certainly advancing rapidly and it does not require 
a prophet to predict its general adoption by all the 
States in the near future. It must be admitted, how- 
ever, that considerable is to be learned from its erro- 
neous and absurd misuse and application in some west- 
ern States. While these mistakes may afford some 
comfort to the critics of direct legislation, they by no 
means affect the principles involved and the end in 
view. , 

To those persons who consider direct legislation im- 
practicable in national affairs owing to the great size 
of our country, I would say that although our numbers 
are large, and we are distributed over a vast area, yet 
we live nearer together by reason of modern means of 
inter-communication than our ancestors, who were 
scattered over a comparatively small territory. By 
means of the telegraph and the press, the events oc- 
curring in one part of the country are almost immedi- 
ately told to the citizens of the most distant part. 
These facilities for the rapid transmission of news tend 
to make us a homogeneous people with many common 
hopes and aspirations, assist us in quickly forming in- 
telligent public opinion concerning public questions and 
prepare us to give expression to the same. To obtain 
a record of public opinions concerning even a national 
issue is simply a matter of detail, at once suggested by 
the manner in which we now hold elections. 

There is no legal provision for a direct vote of the 
people of the United States upon any national question. 
To render such a thing possible would require 
an amendment of the National Constitution. That is a 
question which need not disturb us at the present time. 



34 THE VITAL QUESTION 

It may not become necessary after the adoption by the 
different States of direct legislation, now that we have 
the direct election by the people of United States Sen- 
ators, for then, all the members of Congress would rep- 
resent constituencies that had true popular govern- 
ments. 

Federal measures that could possibly be referred to 
popular vote would most certainly be very few in kind 
and number, as by far the largest number of important 
subjects for legislation are, and ought to be, local sub- 
jects. Let us first adopt direct legislation in all the 
cities and States. If it works successfully in these, as 
we think it will, then we may consider its application 
to national affairs. 

What would be the result of direct legislation by the 
people judging from our own experience, the experi- 
ence of the Swiss Republic and our own reason? The 
lobby would disappear with all its evil associations. 
The power of special privilege would be destroyed. 
Combinations between the politicians of opposing par- 
ties to enrich themselves at the public expense wouU1 
be impossible. The political boss and his heelers 
would be but faint reminiscences of a past age. Only 
able, honest and patriotic men would dare to aspire to 
popular favor. The power of any one man would 
scarcely exceed that of another, except it was tem- 
porarily conferred upon him by his fellow-citizens, sub- 
ject at all times to their recall. Successful business 
men, who now devote themselves too selfishly to pri- 
vate pursuits, would discover that public service would 
be honorably recognized and would become more in- 
terested in public affairs. Legislators would be forced 
to inform themselves carefully concerning public opin- 
ion upon any matter that might come before them, or 
invite popular disapproval. Few special or private' 
laws would be passed, few valuable franchises would be 
donated to private corporations, and the public welfare 



THE VITAL QUESTION 35 

would be the first and last consideration of the repre- 
sentatives. The way would be open for more general 
discussion and interest in public questions. The age 
of eloquence would be revived, not for the merely 
rhetorical and grandiloquent orator, but for the speak- 
er thoroughly conversant with the subject which he 
was presenting to a highly intelligent audience, quick 
to detect and frown down any clap-trap or catch 
phrases. The influence of the press would still be pow- 
erful, although its power would be exerted in a differ- 
ent manner than it ofttimes is at present. Instead of 
attempting to mould public opinion in the interests of 
its patrons, instead of giving color to the suspicion that 
its editorials were dictated in the counting room, it 
would seek to ascertain public opinion, to reflect it, 
and would be compelled to become more unbiased and 
less influenced by purely commercial considerations 
than is sometimes now the case. If the press desired 
to retain and extend its influence, it would necessarily 
be forced to advocate the true interests of the people. 
Public questions would be discussed not only in the 
newspapers but upon every platform. There is little 
danger to be feared from free and unrestricted speech 
at meetings peaceably called and conducted. There 
is infinitely more danger to be feared from a tendency 
to stifle free and full discussion by permitting inter- 
ested editors, corporations and politicians to do our 
thinking for us. 

In fine, a restoration to the people of their full sov- 
ereignty, the right to manage their own affairs and, 
when that is not literally practicable, to have the right 
at all times to hold their agents accountable, as con- 
templated in our constitutions, by proposing and veto- 
ing laws not urgent, and also by demanding their re- 
call, would bring greater prosperity and happiness to 
the people as a whole. We should recollect that popu- 
lar revolutions are caused not by conferring rights, but 



36 THE VITAL QUESTION 

by refusing them. The people would not be levelled 
down, but levelled up. Monopolies and trusts alone 
would be levelled down as they in justice should be. 
The average law-abiding, prudent and industrious citi- 
zen would be afforded a fairer opportunity to secure 
the inalienable rights enumerated in our several con- 
stitutions and to live and enjoy his life. True democ- 
racy, or popular government, is to be more and more 
emphasized in this country in the immediate future, and 
promises to find continually widening fields in other 
lands. 



CHAPTER III. 
Trusts, Combinations and Effects on Prices and Labor. 

Trusts or large business combinations are not natur- 
ally co-operative, and they tend to divide all citizens 
into two classes, the employer and the employee, with 
antagonistic interests, and to destroy normal competi- 
tion and force the small man to the wall. Yet it is 
claimed by some that "big" business has come to stay, 
and that competition is a thing of the past and that the 
effect of trusts is to lower prices and that the people 
have never obtained the necessaries of life at so low a 
price as since the organization of trusts — a sort of 
post hoc propter hoc argument. Others insist that 
trusts sometimes temporarily lower prices for the pur- 
pose of ruining competitors and that ultimately they 
raise- prices. This has recently been done in meats 
and other necessaries of life, as is known by every 
housekeeper and every person who goes to market. 

Of course, if the effect of trusts is to monopolize a 
business and raise prices nothing can be said in their 
favor. If, on the contrary, the effect is to lower prices, 
the burden is upon the friends of trusts to prove that 
the life of trade, or competition, is not destroyed, and 
that if competition is destroyed, such destruction is 
beneficial, and that the means of one's securing a liveli- 
hood are not narrowed and restricted ; that men are still 
able to get the same wages, or more, with which to buy 
the cheaper goods and be able to save more than they 
could before the formation of trusts. In other words, 
cut off the means or opportunities of a person to get a 
living, offer him cheaper goods, and he will be in a 
better position than ever. This is absurd. A man 



38 THE VITAL QUESTION 

with no money finds cheap goods dear indeed. In- 
stead of benefiting men even by cheap goods, trusts 
would have the effect of taking away from those that 
have not, all that they have and giving it to those that 
have. Yet, do not understand me as conceding that 
trusts tend to cheapen prices of commodities, for I 
think that the opposite tendency is true. 

Let us now examine a few more of the injurious ef- 
fects to individuals in the event of the complete control 
by trusts of the commercial world. 

In this connection, just imagine for a moment the 
vast number of persons who would be thrown out of 
employment, even if the volume of goods produced by 
the trusts remained the same as before their complete 
organization. It would not follow that the same num- 
ber of unskilled laborers would be employed as before, 
for it is to be presumed that economy would be prac- 
tised in every direction, and that labor-saving devices 
and so-called scientific management devices would con- 
tinually be invented and introduced. The number of 
employees would certainly be decreased, as has already 
been done by the closing of many concerns which have 
joined existing trusts. 

Many employees other than unskilled laborers are 
also sure to lose their positions, such as superintend- 
ents, foremen, bookkeepers, clerks, etc., whose services 
may readily be dispensed with, when many concerns in 
a particular industry come under a single management, 
because single management means economy of per- 
sonal services of every kind. What become of tho^e 
discharged employees? They must seek new employ- 
ment in other businesses already over supplied with 
similar officials, or go down a step in the industrial 
ladder and compete with men who obtain less salary or 
wages than they have been accustomed to receive, thus 
tending to glut the common labor market still more 
and to make wages still lower. What hope is there for 



THE VITAL QUESTION 39 

these men to rise in the world when they cannot stay 
where they are and possibly cannot secure even infe- 
rior employment anywhere? Always bear in mind that 
when you lessen the opportunities of individuals to bet- 
ter their condition, you cannot be advancing the gen-* 
eral welfare. The entire superstructure of society 
rests upon them and will topple and crack like any 
other structure if the foundation is neglected. 

Again, by combining all business under one manage- 
ment it may be true that you save dollars and cents, 
but you save them at the expense of the liberty and 
freedom of the citizens to engage in healthy and nor- 
mal competition. Natural competition is just as truly, 
the life of trade today as it ever was, and it always 
will be so. This is an inexorable and immutable law 
that all the trusts and their corrupt legislators and lob- 
byists combined cannot annihilate, any more than they 
can annihilate the law of gravitation. To niggardly 
economize in the production of commodities for the 
benefit of a few, and sacrifice the liberty of the many by 
placing upon them the shackles of serfdom, is not na- 
tional economy. It is rather national extravagance 
and waste. It is a crime that sooner or later must be 
atoned for by its authors, or their beneficiaries. 

The persons injured are not only the discharged ser- 
vants formerly employed by the trusts in the different 
grades of employment, but many outside the trusts are 
also injured. Capitalists of moderate means, who de- 
sire to enter a particular business, cannot do so with 
any chance of success if that business is monopolized 
or artificially controlled by a trust. By destroying 
competition the cause of labor becomes the cause of 
moderate capital. The man with moderate wealth or, 
with ambition to become a capitalist, a laudable ambi- 
tion, would then be precluded from making the most of 
himself. Can it be said within the bounds of reason, 
that it is for the general welfare that capitalists should 



40 THE VITAL QUESTION 

not be encouraged, and that the young men of the 
country should be prevented from engaging in business 
upon their own account, and that the doors of such an 
opportunity should be closed to them? It is for the 
benefit of the country as a whole that the employment 
of capital, as well as labor, should be fostered to the 
greatest possible extent. Unlimited employment of 
capital is the natural and normal condition of human 
activity. Trusts tend to limit the employment of both. 
The time has arrived when moderate capitalists and 
laborers should unite politically to right their common 
wrongs against a common enemy. There is no longer 
a labor problem only, but a people's problem in whose 
correct solution all useful and liberty-loving citizens are 
equally concerned. Vote secretly, if need be, but vote 
against trusts and monopoly until all laws favoring 
them are blotted from our statute books. 

The future welfare of this country is imperilled, and 
all patriotic and law-abiding citizens both for their own 
welfare and for the welfare of those who are to come 
after them, should invoke all lawful means to destroy 
the trusts and their baneful effects. To neglect to do 
this, is but to invite and encourage the growth and de- 
velopment of a tyranny and despotism unparalleled in 
history, and to afford amusement to foreign friends of 
centralized power and ruling classes, and to excite the 
exultation of the domestic enemies of true democracy. 
Let the people exercise their neglected political rights 
by thorough organization. Divided, the people are 
weak. United, they would be irresistible. One of two 
things is in store for them. Destruction of monopoly and 
special privilege, or destruction of liberty. Which shall 
it be? Shall they be deprived of what God has given 
them, or will He aid them in the recovery of their just 
inheritance — the earth and the right to enjoy the ful- 
ness thereof, and to "delight themselves in the abun- 
dance of peace"? 



CHAPTER IV. 

Equable Taxation. 

One of the most important and far-reaching func- 
tions of a government is that of levying taxes upon its 
citizens for its maintenance. During the troublous 
times of war, there is little opportunity for discussing 
mere theories of taxation. All property real and per- 
sonal, incomes, businesses, commercial and legal trans- 
actions must contribute to the immediate defense and 
preservation of the nation. The so-called war taxes 
will be repealed after the return of peace as rapidly as 
the exigencies of the government may permit. 

The following system of equable taxation, therefore, like 
many other reforms, is certain to receive, after the war, 
serious and extensive consideration. The writer claims 
no originality in respect to the substantial features of 
the system, which is generally known as the single tax. 
He is here making the attempt to state in as condensed 
form as practicable the salient points in its favor, and 
is willing to submit to the candid judgment of the 
reader whether, on the whole, the placing of all taxes 
upon the rental values of land, rather than burdening 
personal property with any taxes at all, is not in the 
long run preferable, and for the general welfare, that 
is, the welfare of both labor and capital? 

The single tax theory, if accepted by public opinion, 
would no doubt revolutionize and greatly improve so- 
cial and industrial conditions. By this, it is not meant 
that it will require a violent civil disturbance for its 
adoption. It will merely require a partial remodelling, 
so to speak, of our social and industrial fabric, which 
has been too artificially fashioned. We want first of 



42 THE VITAL QUESTION 

all to get back to primary principles, and insist that 
our development shall in the future be rational, normal 
and just. 

The single tax should not be considered a panacea 
for the industrial ills of mankind, although many look 
upon it as one of the greatest economic remedies, or 
reforms, ever presented to reason and common sense. 
Its adoption would clear the way for the normal action 
of certain economic laws that are essential to social 
and industrial health, which alone can be conducive lo 
real happiness and contentment. 

Single taxers are neither socialists nor anarchists, 
although some careless persons say they are both. So- 
cialists desire to make use of present governments and 
to accomplish their ends, they insist that the State shall 
own all means of production, and that each shall work 
for all and all for each, through constitutional and law- 
ful means. At least, that is what they claim. On the 
other hand, the anarchists do not believe in participat- 
ing in governments, but insist upon their overthrow, 
holding that a co-operative commonwealth would nat- 
urally rise from the ruins. The socialists represent 
one extreme, that of collectiveism, or the destruction 
of individual liberty, and the anarchists the other ex- 
treme, that of the greatest possible individual liberty 
without governmental interference. 

The single taxers represent neither of these ex- 
tremes. They are more conservative than either so- 
cialists or anarchists. They believe in liberty and free- 
dom in individual or private affairs, the right to the ab- 
solute ownership of one's share of production, and in the 
State control or ownership of those functions which are 
public and which pertain to the State, and which have 
been thoughtlessly or corruptly transferred to private 
interests, like the transportation of persons and com- 
modities, the transmission of intelligence, the furnish- 
ing of gas and electric light, et cetera. This is not social- 



THE VITAL QUESTION 43 

ism, but only a restoration to individuals of their rights, 
and to the state of what originally belonged to it and 
relate to its normal functions. 

Let us now proceed to learn specifically what the 
single tax is and what its effect would be. By it, all 
taxation of every kind would be abolished except that 
upon land values. This does not mean tax upon land 
according to area, but according to its market valua- 
tion. The land that had the most value would pay the 
greatest tax, — land that had no value would pay no 
tax. 

The first question that arises is, what has a system 
of taxation to do with the general social and industrial 
welfare of mankind anyway? 

The answer is, that it has everything to do with it. 
Iniquitous systems of taxation have caused most uf 
the great revolutions and wars of history. Unjust 
systems of taxation injure both capitalists and laborers, 
and all useful citizens are both laborers and capitalists 
in varying degrees, and what injures labor injures capi- 
tal under the operation of natural laws. The term 
capital is not used synonymously with that of monop- 
oly by single-taxers, a distinction which should be kept 
in mind, but is used as meaning wealth engaged in pro- 
duction. 

The only way open to us* to provide for the mainte- 
nance of government, and secure all the protection and 
benefits which result from government, is taxation. 
This, in some form or other, is a necessary burden, and 
in fact should in theory be imposed upon us directly by 
the government. The power to impose it should not 
be delegated by the government. Both capital and 
labor should be taxed as lightly as possible. The the- 
ory of the single tax is that neither of these factors of 
wealth should be taxed at all, and that as a conse- 
quence, capital would largely increase and that wages 



44 THE VITAL QUESTION 

would in like manner advance and receive far greater 
employment. 

Then if neither labor nor capital is to be taxed, 
where is the income to maintain the government to 
come from? It is to come, we say, from the value of 
land. We say that land is in reality an element of na- 
ture, like air and water, and that those who use this 
element called land should pay the government, as a 
public landlord, for such use in rent or taxes. It 
would not be considered unwise or unjust that persons 
monopolizing the air or water, if that were possible, 
should be compelled to pay for the great privilege of 
using those elements to our exclusion. Instead of 
making such persons pay taxes for doing this, it would 
not take us long in some way to get air and water from 
them, and we might be tempted to place them where 
they would have no further use for either. 

Of course, the land originally belonged to all and no 
one was entitled justly to any part of it unless he made 
good use of it. That is the starting point of the singie 
tax. It is merely saying that everyone who gets a por- 
tion of the earth's surface, whether he obtained it 
justly or unjustly, secured it by force or inherited it, 
shall use it and pay the community for such use, and 
that if he is unwilling to use it or pay for its use, to let 
some one else use it who is willing to pay his fellows 
or the community for the privilege. 

Whether it is unjust or not to privately own land is 
not of the slightest consequence. To argue and harp 
upon this injustice, if it be one, only seems to antago-, 
nize present land owners, both great and small, those 
who hold land for legitimate purposes and those who 
hold it for injurious purposes. To start out and call a 
man a robber and a thief is certainly not a good pre- 
liminary to asking him to sit down and reason with ns 
upon the solution of questions, in which he ought to be 
deeply concerned. The better way to proceed is to 



THE VITAL QUESTION 45 

admit that landowners have a good right to their lands, 
and that their titles are not to be disturbed in the 
least. Then try to convince the landowners, or more 
especially the landusers, that they would in fact be ben- 
efited by a tax levied upon the values of land alone. 
The only landowner, in fact, the only person in the com- 
munity, that would not be benefited by the single tax 
would be the land speculator, the man who doesn't use 
the land or improve it, and wants the community to im- 
prove all the land around him and add thereby greater 
value to his land. He is unwilling to pay anything 
into the general fund in payment for this benefit — for 
this privilege of having others labor for him and con- 
tribute to his wealth. He wants the contribution all 
to go in one direction, and that direction is towards 
his pockets and not the public treasury. It is not nec- 
essary, therefore, that we should charge that even the 
land speculator unjustly owns land; we need only say 
that he should pay the community a considerable part 
of the benefits which the community gave him and 
which he did not earn. 

I assert, that all the owners of land who actually use 
and improve their lands would be greatly benefited by 
the single tax. The single tax, you will understand, 
is placed only upon the value of the land, and would 
not be placed upon any improvements upon the land, 
like houses, or other structures. Under the single tax 
definition, nothing is land but the natural surface of the 
earth underlying all improvements. What is com- 
monly meant by real estate, is not what is meant by 
single-taxers when they use the term. They mean 
only the natural land, and that is all. The improve- 
ments of every description placed upon the land or 
added to it they call personal property. So the term 
personal property as used by the single taxers includes 
every conceivable kind of property except the natural 
land, that is, property or wealth, the production of 



46 THE VITAL QUESTION 

which persons had something to do with. All this per- 
sonal property, single taxers would make perfectly free 
from taxes. If this were done, what would be the 
result and who would be benefited? The result would 
be that personal property, and that indeed would in- 
clude houses as well as every form of movable wealth 
known to man and contributing to his comfort and 
luxury, relieved of the danger of being taxed, would 
emerge from all places of concealment, engage in pro- 
ducing more wealth and greatly extend the employ- 
ment of labor and increase the rate of wages. 

It is hardly necessary to argue that a tax placed 
only upon land values would benefit capital and labor. 
It would also benefit holders of land who used it or 
improved it. The land speculator is, as was said 
above, the sole person who would be injured. Land- 
owners who used land by erecting buildings upon it ( 
would be benefited, because business being better, more 
capital and labor would be employed, greater general 
prosperity would be experienced, and greater demand 
for their buildings would be made by new tenants able 
to pay a fair rent because of their increased employ- 
ment and consequent advance in wages. 

It would be easier to get some land to use if it were 
taxed according to its value. In other words, it would 
be sold by those who would not use it and pay taxes 
upon it. As a result, it would be comparatively easy 
for the honest and industrious man who was anxious 
and willing to use and improve land to get possession 
of some of it. This would mean a new impetus to the 
building of houses, and to the manufacture of the thou- 
sand and one things that enter into the construction of 
buildings, or are used in them when completed. 

The easiest way to grasp the principles of the single 
tax is simply to carry in mind that all wealth, notwith- 
standing all the antiquated nonsense that has been 
spoken and written upon the subject in times gone by, 



THE VITAL QUESTION 47 

is the result of the action of labor upon land. The 
result has been wealth in its various forms. Capital is 
merely wealth that co-operates with labor in acting 
upon land and producing new wealth. Therefore, any- 
thing which relieves labor and capital of burdens, and 
taxation is only a burden, will benefit them both. It 
will aid in the accumulation of capital and add to the 
reward of labor and increase its employment. It is 
possible to decrease capital and lower wages by taxa- 
tion, but land cannot be so decreased. Its quantity 
remains fixed. You cannot by any means decrease the 
area of the globe. Land should be controlled by man, 
and not be permitted to control him. It should serve 
him and be his slave, and not his master. The earth 
should contribute the greatest number of comforts and 
blessings to those who dwell upon it, and it would nat- 
urally and justly do so if certain people, who do not 
adequately use the land or improve it, were not allowed 
to monopolize so much of it, and exclude those who are 
willing to make rightful use of it and pay for the same. 

You cannot change the quantity of land. All 
must use some of it and no one should have the right 
to more than he can use or improve. We cannot have 
too much personal property in the world, or too many 
opportunities for labor, using the term labor in its 
broadest sense. 

The ereat and overwhelming argument in favor of 
the single tax, is, that its adoption would vastly enlarge 
and extend the chance for the average man, indus- 
trious, frugal and intent on being a good citizen, to ac- 
quire a mastery over the comforts and even many of 
the luxuries of life, on account of the increased oppor- 
tunitv to work which its adoption would afford and the 
resultant increased demand for labor. 

It is not necessary to ar^ue that the poor are con- 
stantly growing poorer, and that the rich are con- 
stantly growing richer, and that wealth under our 



48 THE VITAL QUESTION 

present and imperfect system is being rapidly concen- 
trated in fewer hands year by year, and that an aris- 
tocracy of wealth, based upon land in its broadest 
sense, is being built up in this country, threatening 
destruction to our institutions, and serfdom to our 
people. It is enough if we can show that the poor 
people of this country, as a whole, would under the 
system of single tax grow richer, and obtain more and 
more of the good things of this world. 

It is quite safe to make this assertion, that all the 
wealth of this world rests in the last analysis upon land 
and labor, and that those who own or monopolize the 
land control wealth, and that means the control of both 
capital and labor. You cannot imagine any wealth 
that has not utilized the element of land in its produc-* 
tion. 

Single taxers believe that laborers are entitled to an 
equitable share in all that they produce, and that they 
and their products should be exempt from all taxes, es- 
pecially when the revenue, which would be derived from 
taxing land values only, would be ample to defray all 
the expenses of the national, state and municipal govern- 
ments. Indeed, it has been estimated that probably not 
over one-half of the rental value of land, exclusive of all 
improvements, would be needed for a prudent and eco- 
nomical administration of public affairs. 

Another great advantage of the single tax would De 
the ease, certainty, economy and honesty of its assess- 
ment and collection. Now it is absolutely impossible 
to tax all personal property. Much of it is concealed. 
Its possessors frequently perjure themselves when 
asked to make returns to the State of all their personal 
property. A great many well meaning persons holcf 
that the only true system of taxation is to tax every- 
thing, that is, all real and personal estate. However 
beautiful and correct this theory may seem, it has 
never been carried into effect and never can be. Sin- 






THE VITAL QUESTION 49 

gle taxers believe that that theory would be unjust, in- 
asmuch as enormous public revenue can be obtained 
by taxing a part only of the rental value of land. 

The single tax can be levied with absolute certainty. 
The land cannot be hidden from the assessors, and Hs 
value apart from improvements can be estimated with 
equal certainty, as it is now done in many localities, 
notably in Boston. 

The system need not be applied at once. It is only 
necessary to repeal or abolish the taxes that are now 
inequitably and falsely assessed, one by one, until we 
get down to the tax on land values alone. 

There would be very little difficulty in doing this 
under the several State constitutions if the voters de- 
sired to do so. Without going into a legal discussion, 
it is sufficient to say that in order to collect national 
taxes upon land values directly, it would first be neces- 
sary to amend the United States Constitution, which 
provides that "direct taxes" shall be apportioned 
among the States according to population and by im- 
plication, not according to value of land. It is true 
that an amendment to the Federal Constitution is a 
difficult thing to effect, still if a strong public sentiment 
were awakened in favor of a single tax, it would be 
quite possible to secure such an amendment. 

This reform is more than a mere fiscal or economic 
reform. It is a moral reform as well. It would pow- 
erfully aid in solving the labor problem, by throwing 
open to men limitless fields and opportunities for em- 
ployment. It would abolish poverty except for the 
sluggard, the invalid and the imbecile. Under this sys- 
tem over-production, or glut, in the market of com- 
modities would be impossible, because there would be 
no under-consumption, for the reason that the ability 
of the people to pay and consume would be inestimable. 
Labor-saving machines would prove a blessing, instead 
of a possible injury, in many cases, because it would 



50 THE VITAL QUESTION 

be easy for the people to obtain fair chances and fair 
wages for operating these machines which now they 
are not always able to obtain. Besides, skilled labor- 
ers demanding a high standard of living are displaced 
under present conditions by the unskilled and those 
who are willing to be content with a low standard of 
living and low wages. Laborers, skilled and unskilled, 
would under the single tax become better educated 
and better citizens, because they would obtain more 
leisure and means for the acquirement of education 
and better citizens, because they would obtain more 
in the enjoyment of greater liberty and freedom. 



Some questions and answers in respect to the single 
tax which might naturally suggest themselves, are printed 
below. 

Q. If you tax only the rental value of land, will im- 
provements and personal property bear any of the public 
burden ? 

A. Certainly, because all wealth in the final analysis 
is based upon land, or more strictly speaking, is produced 
by land and labor. By taxing the rental value of land, 
therefore, you are sure to take some of the product of 
land and labor in the form of taxes, because you do not 
take any of the land. 

O. Then how can you claim that railroad stocks and 
bonds are taxed if you tax land values only? 

A. For the reason that the stocks and bonds of rail- 
roads, generally speaking, are but the representatives of 
the value of the road-bed or the franchise, which is but 
a right or easement in the land. We may say that the 
stocks and bonds of a railroad are but the evidence of 
land values, and resemble a deed of land divided into 
many parts. Bonds, indeed, are but conditional deeds of 
the property whose value depends upon the value of 
the land or easements owned. What value would the 



THE VITAL QUESTION 51 

rolling stock, and other personal property of railroads 
have, independently of the franchise or right to use the 
land? 

Q. Would the single tax, equal to the rental value of 
land only, be enough to meet the demands of govern- 
ment? 

Yes, it has been estimated that it would not be neces- 
sary to use all for the needs of government; that prob- 
ably a little more than fifty per cent, of the rental values 
would be sufficient. This has been accurately figured 
out by Mr. Shearman in his work entitled "Natural 
Taxation." 

O. Suppose a person owning a lot of land erects a 
building upon it, would not that increase his taxes? 

A. Under the present system of taxation it would, 
because we tax his improvements. In other words, we 
fine him for improving his land. 

Q. Ought a neighbor of his who owns adjoining 
land and does not erect a house upon it, to pay the same 
tax? 

A. Yes. He should improve or pay for the privilege 
of preventing others from using and improving it. His 
neighbors, by building upon their lots, add value to his 
land without any exertion on his part. 

Q. Suppose a man did not pay his tax on his land 
value and had a house upon it, what would be done and 
what would become of his house and improvements? 

A. The title to his land, and the houses and im- 
provements would be all sold at public sale, just as land 
is now sold for non-payment of taxes, and all money 
received from such a sale, in excess of the amount due 
for taxes, could be paid back to the delinquent. This 
would be entirely equitable and just. 

Q. Would the farmer be benefited or injured by 
the single tax? 

A. As a land speculator he might be injured, as a 
farmer, he would be greatly benefited. His personal 



52 THE VITAL QUESTION 

property as defined under the single tax, and consisting 
of farming implements, stock, products, houses and 
barns, house furnishings, etc., would all be exempt from 
taxation. Now, he pays more tax upon personal prop- 
erty than even the wealthy residents of cities. His profits 
from farming would be correspondingly increased. If 
the rental value of his land only was taxed, the amount 
of the tax might be very small. The farmer is taxed 
too heavily at present and he is taxed more in propor- 
tion than other owners of land. It has been roughly 
estimated that he owns about half of the property of the 
country and pays about three-quarters of the total tax 
collected in the country. 

Q. How would you tax mines ? 

A. The same as any other industry based upon land, 
upon the value of the property as a mine. 

Q. How would you apply the single tax to a steam 
railroad, a street railway, a gas, an electric or telephone 
company ? 

A. By taxing the value of the land, or the value of 
the easement or right of way over the highway, measured 
by the worth of the privileges for those purposes. 

O. Would not houses become vacant under the 
single tax? 

A. No. Many houses now become vacant just as 
soon as "hard times" come on. Under the single tax 
there would be no "hard times." Labor would be con- 
stantly employed by reason of new opportunities, and 
laborers would have more money with which to hire 
houses. There could not be a surplus of houses. De- 
sirable houses favorably situated would more readily and 
constantly find tenants than now. The owners of such 
houses would be benefited. A great many more houses 
would then be built and occupied, and a great many of 
them would be homes owned by people who are now un- 
able to own homes. Both tenants and owners of houses 
would be benefited. 



THE VITAL QUESTION 53 

Q. Would not the storekeeper make his customers 
pay the tax which was levied upon the value of his 
land? 

A. He could not, because removing taxes from the 
commodities he offers for sale tends to increase the pro- 
duction of those commodities and the natural competi- 
tion which would result, would alone determine and reg- 
ulate the price of commodities. He would have to con- 
form to the prevailing price or lose his customers. 

Q. Would not a poor man who has invested his 
savings in a lot of land upon which he intended to build 
a home, be injured by the single tax? 

A. He would be benefited much more than he would 
be injured. It is true that he would pay more tax upon 
his land, but it would be much easier for him to get 
increased wages, and secure his house. He would save 
more than he would pay out, and in addition he would 
be permanently better off in every respect. 

Q. Would the single tax aid or injure the man who 
owed debts of any kind, and particularly mortgages 
upon his land? 

A. It would aid him. There would be greater de- 
mand for both his personal services and the products of 
his land if he was a farmer. It would be easier for him 
to secure the means to more rapidly wipe out his debts 
and pay off his mortgage. Again, there would be less 
occasion for him to get into debt, or to mortgage his 
land. 

Q. Undoubtedly the single tax would destroy land 
monopoly. How about monopoly in personal property? 
Would not that he possible under the single tax? 

A. No, for the reason that the single tax would open 
up the field in every department of human activity to free 
and natural competition. Where there is natural and un- 
restrained competition and equal opportunity to apply 
labor to land, the real factors of wealth, no such thing as 



54 THE VITAL QUESTION 

a long continued monopoly could exist. It would soon be 
broken down by successful competition. 

Q. Some land is made or filled in and rendered valu- 
able, which before was valueless and useless. How 
would the single tax affect such land? 

A. The earth that is filled in is an improvement just 
as a building erected upon land is an improvement, and 
should be exempt from taxation. You would tax the 
value of the land under the filled land or improvement, 
just the same as the land under a building. Its value 
would be measured by the value of a lot in the vicinity 
not improved. Land would not be filled in that had no 
ascertainable value. 

Q. What increases the value of land? 
A. It is increased by the growth of the community 
in the vicinity of the land. 

Q. Why is there any more harm in speculating in 
land than in personal property? 

A. Because the quantity of land, or the most desira- 
ble and choice land, is limited, while the possibilities of 
producing personal property is unlimited and cannot and 
should not be prevented under a system of free competi- 
tion. There can never be too much personal property in 
the world. 

Q. Is it right that the laborer should go untaxed and 
that the landowner be taxed ? 

A. Yes, because the laborer has a natural right to all 
that he can produce. He has a right to own himself. The 
landowner," although he has a legal right or title to his 
land, has no natural right to it and its value. The value 
of the land was not created by him but by the community, 
for which he should pay the community in the nature of 
a tax. Besides, the laborer cannot escape paying a tax 
in the nature of rent to his landlord if he is only a tenant. 
Q. How much of a rise in wages do you think would 
result from a general adoption of the single tax? 

A. Mr. Shearman in "Natural Taxation" estimated 



THE VITAL QUESTION 55 

that the demand for labor would not fail to increase by 
more than a third, and that this would cause a rise in 
wages of one hundred per cent. 

Q. Would the single tax tend to help labor at the 
expense of capital? 

A. Certainly not. The single tax would help both 
labor and capital and would tend rather to assist in re- 
storing their normal relation to each other, and that is 
mutuality of interest. It would remove all provocation 
for strife between labor and capital. 

Q. Is any reorganization of society demanded to 
secure full operation of the single tax ? 

A. Nothing of the kind is necessary. It is based up- 
on the true spirit of our institutions and is in perfect 
harmony with them. Only a slight amendment in our 
national constitution would be required, and but little 
change in our state laws beyond the repeal of unjust and 
unscientific tax laws. 

Q. How would the single tax affect the cheap tene- 
ment house problem? 

A. It would supply the poor tenants with better tene- 
ments for the same rent, because houses would be built 
in increased numbers upon unimproved and unused 
land. 



CHAPTER V. 
Public Ownership of Public Utilities. 

Public ownership of public utilities, such as the rail- 
roads, telegraph, gas, electric companies and the like, 
was much more generally discussed a dozen years ago 
than at any time since. Very recently, however, this 
subject has been revived and promises in the immedi- 
ate future to demand sincere reconsideration and per- 
manent settlement. 

In the past, public ownership of public utilities had 
many timid friends who, while they believed in it, yet 
hesitated openly to espouse it. Many writers con- 
demned it with faint praise, and many public men 
evaded it and sedulously veiled any convictions they 
might have had about it. 

Frank Parsons, now an acknowledged authority 
upon the subject, an exceptionally thorough and pains- 
taking investigator, was fearful of the immediate adop- 
tion of public ownership during his life by reason of 
the heterogeneous character of our people. Mr. 
Bryan traveled around the world a few years ago to 
study the question, returned convinced of its justness 
and practicability. Nevertheless, he did not deem tbe 
time as then ripe for its open advocacy in his subse- 
quent presidential campaign. Many eminent states- 
men like Mr. Lodge, though conversant with foreign 
affairs, called public ownership a "curse." Many rail- 
road and "big business" men like Mr. Perkins pro- 
nounced the idea socialistic and impossible. 

A great change in conditions and sentiment has now 
taken place, since England and France have national- 
ized their railroads, and the United States, the great 



THE VITAL QUESTION 57 

conservative republic, is about to empower the Presi- 
dent to take control of and manage for war purposes 
all the required railroads of the country. The number 
of miles of railroads in the entire world under, and still 
likely to be under private ownership and management, 
is reduced to almost a negligible figure and quite too 
small to support any formidable argument in favor of 
private ownership of public transportation. No proof 
would seem to be necessary to show that what a gov- 
ernment can do in time of war it has the ability, integ- 
rity and capacity to do in time of peace, if it then had 
the desire so to act. 

We should not forget that during peaceful times rail- 
road securities have steadily declined, that the blun- 
ders and crimes of past management have been coming 
home to roost, that experts have been clamoring for 
more and more government regulations, for the adoption 
of fantastic schemes of valuation, and for a partnership 
with the government in order to use its credit to secure 
possibly thirty billions of new capital for the extension of 
the railroads during the next quarter of a century to 
meet the estimated threefold increase in the public re- 
quirements of transportation. 

If all the desires of the railroads should be complied 
with, the following generation will face a problem of 
public ownership of considerable magnitude. 

It should not be overlooked that the trivial amount 
of thirty billions, which slips so trippingly from the 
tongues of railroad experts, is more than four times the 
amount that would be required to buy all the capital 
stock of the railroad companies in the United States, 
and probably eight times the sum that would be needed 
to purchase a majority of the capital stock of such com- 
panies, at present market quotations, and certainly a 
majority of the stock of those railroad companies en- 
gaged in interstate traffic. 

Nothing is more universally conceded in regard to 



58 THE VITAL QUESTION 

railroads than this proposition, if regulation by the 
government should fail government ownership would be 
inevitable. 

Government regulation of railroads has already been 
tried and failed in every country of any . prominence 
throughout the world. It does not now obtain out- 
side of the United States, and is practically a failure 
here at the present writing, with the railroad interests 
loudly crying for state aid. During the war the Presi- 
dent will no doubt be given full control and manage- 
ment of all of the railroads of the country. This prec- 
edent may prove an unanswerable argument in times ob 
peace to support the claims of those who believe that 
the government is the only competent power to own 
and manage the railroads. In regard to the taking 
over of the railroads by Great Britain during the war, 
the Outlook for May 16, 1917, published the following 
in an article by W. M. Acworth : 

"Of course, Great Britain, with twelve per cent, of 
its total population under arms, and with almost as 
many more engaged in the manufacture of military 
supplies, is in the war deeper than the United States 
is ever likely to be. But if the experience of the 
United Kingdom has any lessons for the people of the 
United States, they would seem to be twofold: (1) 
Even if the government should think fit to take over 
the railways, it should leave the management and oper- 
ation wholly in the hands of the old staff; and (2) if it 
does take them over, or if, without taking them over, 
it so far interferes with the normal traffic as to upset 
the customary balance between income and expendi- 
ture, it should at once come to a fair agreement with 
the proprietors, securing the result that they receive a 
normal return of income from- their property, and not 
wait for subsequent discussion and possible litigation, 
with heated charges of blackmail on the one hand and 
confiscation on the other." 



THE VITAL QUESTION 59 

In the nature of things government regulation of 
railroads is doomed to failure, and public ownership is 
sure to take its place. If by any superhuman power 
regulation should succeed, the success would only show 
that the government could regulate and superintend 
public enterprises so well and so efficiently, as to sur- 
pass the regulation and superintendence of private 
owners of such enterprises. For the government per- 
fectly to regulate railroads, by fixing rates and sala- 
ries, determining earnings, issues of stock and bonds, 
and dictating the policies of every kind for the rail* 
roads to follow, it would be nothing more or less than 
the government exercising the functions of public own- 
ership. Nothing more would be needed to demon- 
strate governmental capacity for full ownership. The 
dilemma into which the advocates of government regu- 
lation of railroads force themselves is inescapable. If, 
regulation fails, public ownership must follow. If reg- 
ulation succeeds public ownership is the result, no mat- 
ter by what name you call it. But government regula- 
tion of railroads, as we have before observed, has in- 
variably failed, because public business cannot have 
two masters and thrive. 

There has been such a complete change in general 
conditions, that it becomes almost unnecessary to re- 
view in detail the well known arguments for and against 
public ownership. Still it might be profitable for the 
reader, who has given little attention to the subject, 
particularly as it pertains to the railroads, to refer to 
a few of those arguments which are also applicable to 
other kinds of public utilities. 

Without wearying the reader with an exhausting 
array of statistics, it may be generally stated that the 
steam railroads of the country consist of about 252,230 
miles, and are capitalized and bonded for about $21,- 
000,000,000, a little less than half of which is repre- 
sented in capital stock. Five per cent, earnings upon 



60 THE VITAL QUESTION 

this vast sum, a moderate rate, would be a little over 
one billion of dollars, but the total dividends on shares 
and interest on debts amount to only about four per 
cent. The stock and bonds per mile issued by the rail- 
roads of the country reach the excessive sum of 
$66,661. Forty thousand miles of railroads of the 
United States are now in the hands of receivers, which 
is only another way of saying that such are already 
being managed by the government, that is, by one of 
its arms, the courts. 

Reputable authority informs us that the railroads of 
the country can be rebuilt for one-half their present capi- 
talization, represented in capital stock and indebtedness. 
If such is the fact, then the people are, in round figures, 
paying annually one-half a billion of dollars, or over one 
and one-half million dollars for every working day in the 
year, more than they ought to pay for the use of the 
railroads. This amount ought to be saved. It is now an 
economic waste and is unnecessarily taken from the peo- 
ple's pockets. Our scientific management and efficiency 
experts should first advocate saving this amount before 
seeking to speed up and standardize the employees in the 
sacred name of efficiency. Squeeze out the water from 
the excessive valuations of the railroads before seeking 
to economize by squeezing the skilled and unskilled em- 
ployees of the railroads. 

What is a just and fair remedy for this condition 
of the railroads, which are now so loudly asking 
for more and more government aid and support, 
increased facilities to borrow more and more and 
still more money to conceal and repair the past 
mistakes and greed of promoters and speculators, the 
remission of taxes and numerous other governmental 
favors? The business of railroads is a public business 
in its nature, and ought not in reason to be longer owned 
and managed by private interests. Let the public at- 
tend to things that are public and the individual to 



THE VITAL QUESTION 6l 

things that are private, or to industries that depend 
solely upon his initiative and give full, just and natural 
play to his liberty to compete upon equal terms with his 
fellows. 

As we have already seen, the railroads are at pres- 
ent owned and nationalized by all the principal coun- 
tries of the world, and the final step is but a short one 
for the United States to take in order to acquire com- 
plete ownership and full control of a sufficient portion 
of the interstate railroads and commerce of the coun- 
try, and leave to the individual States to deal with their 
respective internal or local railroad problems. 

It has been carefully estimated that only about 
167,824 miles of interstate railroads would have to be 
acquired by the national government to insure virtual 
national ownership of interstate railroad traffic. The 
capital stock of such necessary railroads aggregate 
three and one-half billions of dollars, and sold in 1914 
for about one hundred dollars per share. A majority 
of such capital stock could in fact be acquired by the 
government for less than one-half of said sum, with all 
the debts, property and obligations of such companies, 
This would be no innovation, because the United States 
a few years ago acquired a majority of the capital stock 
of the Panama Canal railroad, although it also paid a 
lump sum in addition for it. This method of the acqui- 
sition of railroads by the government is perhaps the 
simplest and fairest to all persons concerned, and re- 
moves the necessity of resorting to the cumbersome 
machinery of taking them over under the power of emi- 
nent domain, with its subsequent delays and adjust- 
ments. In these times of "big business" and big na- 
tional loans, the undertaking by the national govern- 
ment to control, and even to own the requisite inter- 
state railroads, does not assume very staggering pro- 
portions. 

Carl S. Vrooman, whose work on American Railway 



62 THE VITAL QUESTION 

Problems should be read by everyone who seeks light 
and authoritative information upon this subject, says, 
"Unquestionably anyone is entitled to hold the belief, 
if he cares to, that our country is incapable of doing 
successfully what all these European countries have 
done," and "it is no longer permissible to dispute the 
statement that in Europe, at least, government railways 
on the whole have been more satisfactory and success- 
ful than have the corporation-owned lines." 

What is true in respect to the advantages of public 
ownership of railroads, in comparison with their private 
ownership, is also essentially true in respect to all other 
public utilities which are owned by the State or the 
municipality. 

The advantages of municipal ownership have been 
carefully enumerated by Carl D. Thompson in a very 
recent work which can be studied with much profit. 

Among many of the advantages common to both 
State and municipal ownership a few may be referred 
to. The government under public ownership can borrow 
money at lower rates than private interests, would be 
obliged to pay only dividends expressed in improved 
service to the public and not in dollars and cents, would 
save several billions annually for the people at large, 
would eliminate the lobby from our legislative halls, with 
its attendant enormous expenses, lessen other corrupting 
influences upon legislation by special privilege, tend to 
destroy civic indifference because of increased interest, 
selfish interest if you please, of citizens in governmental 
affairs directly affecting them, and generally conduce to 
the public welfare. 

Labor, which in the broadest sense is but another 
word for the public, would be directly and indirectly 
benefited by the adopton of public ownership. Those 
employees who worked for the government would, as 
elsewhere, enjoy shorter hours and better wages than 
under private ownership. Their working conditions 



THE VITAL QUESTION 63 

would be more comfortable, sanitary and safe by rea-~ 
son of the adoption of up-to-date appliances and inven- 
tions. Strikes in public utilities would be unnecessary be- 
cause equitable means would be devised for the speedy 
settlement of all just grievances, and the employees 
would know that they were a part of the governmental 
machinery whose motive power was mixed with hu- 
mane sentiment and justice. Under considerate civil 
service rules permanent employment for faithful em- 
ployees would be guaranteed, and fair and just old age 
pensions provided for. Such employees would more 
fully appreciate the privileges of American citizenship 
and feel that they had a voice of increased potency 
in the public welfare. They would enjoy greater oppor- 
tunity for self-improvement in mind and body and be in 
a better position to care for those dependent upon them. 
Most important of all, they would be shining examples of 
the advantages of maintaining as high a standard of liv- 
ing as possible, not only for themselves, but also for the 
entire community. 

Public ownership would mean the establishment of 
uniform rates for all patrons. In the matter of rail- 
road transportation, for illustration, coal miners, large 
dealers in the necessaries of life, farmers and consum- 
ers alike, as in sending mail matter through the post 
office, would pay equal and uniform rates, whether they 
shipped in large or small quantities. This would tend, 
indeed, to discourage monopolies in the necessaries of 
life, to prevent high prices and to restore and maintain, 
normal commercial conditions, both for the producer 
and the consumer. 

Mr. Dunn, editor of the Railway Gazette, not an 
avowed friend of government ownership in 191 5, said: 
"In respect to the importance of the question of gov- 
ernment ownership of railways, it is hardly surpassed 
by any other that seems likely ever to be presented to 
the American democracy for settlement." 



64 THE VITAL QUESTION 

The question is certainly one that demands serious 
thought and attention by all, who are ready and deter- 
mined to render some tangible and lasting service to 
their fellow citizens. 

The most common and seemingly most insuperable 
argument against government ownership of public 
utilities is, that a horde of corrupt office seekers and in- 
competent persons under the leadership of political 
bosses would demand and secure employment to the 
exclusion of efficient and specially trained managers and 
experts, and cause the complete demoralization of the 
public business. A conclusive answer to this argument 
is. that the American people under recent events have 
amply proven that they are not a heterogeneous people 
but a people of common purpose with superb patriot- 
ism, and that what other nations have done they can 
do. The day has passed when any one would be bold 
enough to question the ability, and determination of 
the American people to attempt the solution of all do- 
mestic problems, as well as to assist in solving those of 
other peoples. The experience of Great Britain, since 
the taking over of the control of the railroads by the 
government, has been that the former railroad man- 
agers of the various companies remained, and under 
military superintendence successfully solved all prob- 
lems of transportation that naturally arose under the 
new conditions. Such would be the experience in the 
United States under similar conditions. 

Under public ownership of public utilities as under 
private ownership the best service of great railroad 
managers would be easily procured. This was shown, 
at the very inception of the war with Germany, when at 
the nation's call the ablest and most prominent railroad 
presidents and managers of the country at once sev- 
ered their private official positions, and offered their serv- 
ices to the President of the United States, and prompt- 
ly accepted positions as railroad directors under the 



THE VITAL QUESTION 65 

Council for the National Defense. It is fair to such 
men and their subordinates, to say, that they would do 
the same thing, if the taking over by the national gov- 
ernment of the requisite railroads for war emergencies 
should be ultimately adopted by the government as a 
permanent policy. Every true American must be 
assumed to be patriotic in times of peace as well as in 
times of war, and as willing to render the kind of service 
he is best able to render. 

Under government ownership of the railroads all em- 
ployees would become public officers, and retain their 
positions as long as they faithfully performed their 
duties, under rules and regulations more certain and fair 
than now obtain under private management in respect 
to wages and hours of employment, with a chance for 
promotion for merit and not by reason of favoritism 
and family connections. 

To say that great railroad men would not evince the 
same efficiency and willingness to administer railroad 
affairs under public employment as under private em- 
ployment is to doubt common sense and common patri- 
otism. In most cases, the specially trained railroad 
man would be less hampered and controlled in his ef- 
forts to render the best service to the public as a pub- 
lic servant, than when working under the dictation of 
private owners whose selfish interests might at any 
time clash with those of the public, with which they are 
naturally and unchangeably antagonistic. 



CHAPTER VI. 

Scientific Management. 

Scientific management is a phrase that has recently 
come into general use, and purports to describe a 
method or remedy for securing greater efficiency in pro- 
duction, together with better relations between em- 
ployers and employees. We have heard of Scientific 
socialism, of scientific religion, and are now being 
treated to effusive discussions on scientific manage- 
ment. 

Some of the advocates of scientific management are 
careful to premise their remarks upon the subject by 
stating that they are champions of neither labor nor 
capital, but represent a third something or somebody — 
the public, the consumers. 

In passing, it may be well to suggest that the true 
public servant must, in the nature of things, be a cham- 
pion of both labor and legitimate capital, and that the 
public interests apart from these two great factors of 
wealth are but fanciful and fleeting shadows. It is 
sophistry to claim that there is any interested third fac- 
tor that needs representation, provided always that the 
normal and just relations between labor and legitimate 
capital are observed. 

It is a truism to say that the real interests of labor 
and capital are naturally identical and reciprocal. They 
would, indeed, always be so unless prevented by artifi- 
cial causes. Therefore, it is advisable to keep this 
truism constantly in mind when considering the much 
heralded scientific management. Neither of these great 
factors of wealth can normally grow and thrive at the' 
expense of the other. Under prevalent artificial condi- 



THE VITAL QUESTION 6/ 

tions induced by unwise tax laws, and special privileges 
unwisely conferred, it is possible for large capital to 
secure an undue domination and control of labor. Will 
scientific management bestow on labor greater freedom 
and opportunity and a greater share in production than 
it now enjoys? Or will it have the opposite tendency? 
And if it improves for the time being the fortunes of a 
favored few, will it cast off the many to crowd the ranks 
of the unemployed? These are the important questions 
which arise concerning this subject. 

We may further inquire whether scientific manage- 
ment is but another subtle invention to impede the or- 
ganized efforts of wage-earners to better their condi- 
tion, or to weave about them a new and more refined 
network of embarrassment and discord? 

The term itself, scientific management, in some inde- 
finable manner gives one a shudder. It seems utterly 
devoid of warmth and sentiment. Greater efficiency 
of men and machines must be had at any cost. The 
captains of industry do not appear to be philanthropists 
but cold calculating men impelled by bloodless science. 
We are reminded that science has no need of a heart 
and a circulatory system, and that it may relate to the 
stars or the "insensible rocks." 

Scientific management may be mathematically cor- 
rect and unassailable as a system, if it were to be ap- 
plied to machines and inanimate things. But, this 
would-be science is to be applied to living men, women 
and children. It is not even to be applied to horses 
and mules, for it would be hopeless to attempt to con- 
trol and manage them by holding up before them a 
studiously evolved "standard," which must be learned 
and imitated to avoid being discharged. 

Scientific management, however, is intended for hu- 
man beings. How farther to control and manage em- 
ployees, without arousing their suspicion of additional 
burdens and new exploitation, seem to disturb the slum- 



68 THE VITAL QUESTION 

bers of many directors of modern industry, and excite 
their powers of invention. They advise going slowly, 
using tact, and converting one employee at a time. The 
subject itself of scientific management should admit of 
only open discussion and open application. 

The term, scientific management, is most unfortu- 
nately selected by its advocates. It is certainly expres- 
sive. Its meaning is clear and unambiguous. It is as 
frigid and uncompromising as Mount Washington in mid- 
winter. It has not the elastic interpretation and appli- 
cation that some of its friends would give it. They 
profess to believe that its general adoption would pro- 
duce a veritable millennium in industry, and that it 
would then no longer be necessary to consider such bel- 
ligerent subjects as co-operation and profit-sharing. 

The natural import of the words, scientific manage- 
ment, cannot be misunderstood. Their selection must 
have been made with deliberation, and perhaps with 
malice aforethought. It is eminently fair to assert that 
they cannot mean the mutual interests of employer and 
employee. Science is defined in the Standard Dic- 
tionary to be "knowledge reduced to law and em- 
bodied in a system." We might call it organized 
knowledge. Management is defined by the same au- 
thority to be "The act, art or manner of managing, car- 
rying on, directing, treating or conducting." This is 
unilateral, or one-sided, and does not include or con- 
template any action on the part of the men or things 
managed. They alone are to remain passive and acted 
upon, uncreative and uninventive. 

That scientific management relates primarily to the 
interests of the owner of the industry is too obvious to 
require argument. Mr. Taylor, an authority on scien- 
tific management, says distinctly and explicitly in the 
American Magazine for April, 191 1, that he told the 
men with whom he formerly worked "that he was now 
working on the side of the management." 



THE VITAL QUESTION 69 

By no possible stretch of meaning can scientific man- 
agement include, even in a secondary sense, the true in- 
terests of the employee, unless it is admitted that it 
implies a just assumption of guardianship of employees 
by employers, and that the former are an inferior order 
of beings and fit only to be first subjected to experi- 
mental training, and if found qualified and tractable, 
then guided and managed. The scheme as at present 
applied seems like an attempt to fortify the doctrine 
that the right to govern pertains to those that have the 
might — a species of divine right to rule. It may 
amount to scientific disorganization of labor and scien- 
tific discouragement for the unskilled and the unin- 
structed. 

Scientific management is as narrow and feelingless 
in its intended application as political economy used to 
be. It follows the old and abandoned conception of- 
political economy and treats of "pure economics" in a 
particular industry, with especial regard for the produc- 
tion and distribution of wealth in the interest of capital 
alone. Whatever is distributed of the product to labor, 
as increase in wages, is a gratuity, dictated by policy 
and in no manner naturally or inherently incident to 
the system. Under this plan too much is left to tht 
■ caprice and generosity of employers, which are certain 
to vary among different employers. This can be noth- 
ing else than exceedingly unscientific, as far as labor 
is concerned, especially in these days of large corpora- 
tions, in which the personality of the employer has been 
eliminated and the old-timed personal acquaintance and 
friendly intercourse between employer and employee 
have been destroyed. 

The conditions which largely obtain in modern indus- 
try are not natural but artificial. It is, therefore, im- 
possible to evolve a truly scientific method or philos- 
ophy for conducting modern industry, if those artificial 
conditions are ignored. A true science, like astron- 



JO THE VITAL QUESTION 

omy, or chemistry, is based upon the unyielding facts 
of nature, and not upon artificial and fictitious data. All 
ground that has been traversed in those sciences is 
firm and accurately and absolutely known. Many other 
sciences are inexact or in an empirical stage. For ex- 
ample, sociology may be a true science, but it seems to 
us now to be inexact and experimental. The causes of 
the advance, retrogression or stagnation of civilization 
among various peoples in different ages may be capa- 
ble of orderly and exact arrangement and formulation, 
if known. The difficult and almost super-human task 
is to collate from very insufficient records adequate 
data of the laws, customs and impelling forces of by- 
gone peoples, upon which can be constructed a system 
comprehensive enough to be a science. So, in a 
smaller degree it is difficult and quite futile to con- 
struct a system of scientific management in modern in- 
dustry without considering as of first importance thq 
human element, the man and his relation to the artifi- 
cial conditions which surround him. He is a part of 
them and cannot, like a mere commodity, be separated 
from them. He and his attributes as a human being 
cannot be disregarded. He cannot be subjected forci- 
bly or otherwise to inflexible rules which may dictate 
the proper sizes of shovels, the proper consistency of 
mortar, the proper position of bricks for laying, the 
best machines, etc. Labor, itself, in the nature of 
things should not be deemed to be a commodity and 
subject to the same laws. Labor, wages, man, are one 
and the same. They cannot be divorced or differen- 
tiated from each other. 

One of the greatest crimes of civilization and one of 
the greatest impediments to more rapid progress is the 
stubborn attempt of many leaders of industry to bring 
both men and things under the operation of the same 
economic laws. For instance, it is frequently urged 
that wages, the price of labor, man's services, are regu- 



THE VITAL QUESTION 71 

lated by the same law of supply and demand as the 
price of commodities. That this is not true will appear 
upon a moment's reflection. 

Take any staple commodity, like flour. Its price is 
determined normally by the law of supply and demand 
and is the same throughout the country, and we may 
say throughout the world, except where tariffs or un- 
just speculation interpose, plus the cost of transporta- 
tion from its principal place of production. 

In the abstract, the rate of wages would seem to be 
determined by the same law. Indeed, it is frequently 
said that wages like water seek a common level. As a 
matter of fact, however, wages do not find a common 
level. They vary in different countries and even in' 
different parts of the same country. Natural causes 
like climate, fertility of soil, rich mines newly opened, 
territory and industries newly developed, or artificial 
causes like the organized efforts of workmen, or even 
war and disaster may raise wages above the normal 
rate, either permanently or temporarily, and force them 
to seek, unlike water, a higher level. Yet, aside from 
these causes, wages cannot and do not adjust them- 
selves to uniform rates in different localities. This 
results because wages are inseparably connected with 
a human being. This human being may be the head 
of a family. He may have a partly paid for home. 
His children may be partly educated in special depart- 
ments of knowledge in a particular city or town. He 
may have various obligations to discharge to those 
to whom he may be indebted, or to those who may be 
dependent upon him. There may be many other ties 
and associations which influence him to remain in a cer- 
tain place, and prevent him from quickly changing his 
abode even though higher wages may prevail else- 
where. Hence, it is neither just nor true to assert that 
wages are determined by the same inexorable law of 
supply and demand as the prices of commodity. Labor 



-J2 THE VITAL QUESTION 

cannot be correctly defined as a commodity. It cer- 
tainly is not, when traveling around with the man. 
When separated from him it does become something 
else. That something else is a commodity and is called 
product or wealth. 

It is of supreme importance to learn, what increased 
portion of the product which labor is instrumental In 
creating, would be left to labor or graciously bestowed 
upon it by scientific management. In other words, 
does scientific management tend to scientific "co-opera- 
tion" between capital and labor, and secure to the latter 
a greater share of the wealth produced? A leading ex- 
ponent of scientific management, already referred to, 
declares with great complacency that it causes "en- 
forced co-operation." Does he not mean, in reality, 
"enforced production"? Otherwise, he must think he 
means enforced distribution of product to labor, 
or at least admit that he is inaccurate in his 
use of terms or is attempting to confuse and mislead 
his readers. To prove this, we have but to examine 
two illustrations cited by him of the workings of scien- 
tific management: One of these was that of brick- 
layers who were paid less than fifty per cent, increase 
in wages for about two hundred per cent, more work 
done. The other illustration related to pig-iron hand- 
lers who were paid about seventy per cent, increase in 
wages for about three hundred per cent, more work 
done. Take another example, which appeared in the 
Review of Reviews for March, 191 1, of the application 
of scientific management to shovellers by the Bethle- 
hem Steel Works, as follows: 

Old Plan New Plan 

Number of yard laborers 400 to 600 140 

Average number of tons per day 

per man 16 59 

Average earnings per man per 

day $1.15 $1.88 



THE VITAL QUESTION 73 

Average cost for handling each 

long ton $0,072 $0,033 

In the above figures are included all the extra ex- 
pense of new superintendence, clerical work and time 
study that were required. As will be readily seen, 
about seventy per cent, in number of the men formerly 
employed, and about sixty per cent, of their total wages 
at the old rate of $1.15 per day were saved, and also 
more than fifty per cent, in the cost of handling each 
ton. The men kept, and not discharged or given other 
jobs if found scientifically needed, were paid in the ag- 
gregate about one hundred dollars more per day and 
saved the Steel Works in their department the wages of 
approximately three hundred and sixty men, or over four 
hundred dollars per day. That is to say, the workmen 
retained saved the owners in wages alone more than 
three times the amount of increase paid to them. To 
express the result in another way, under scientific man- 
agement these men got about twenty-five per cent, of 
the amount saved, and the Steel Works got the remain- 
ing seventy-five per cent. 

This may be "enforced" co-operation, but it is very 
far from being scientific co-operation. Scientific man- 
agement cannot, in the nature of things, be equivalent 
to scientific co-operation. Scientific management mav 
be scientific as far as the sole and selfish interests of 
the management are concerned. That I have no in- 
clination to deny. Indeed, that is exactly what I am 
contending for. If the friends of scientific manage- 
ment would admit that, there would be nothing more 
to be said and they would stand convicted as unfeeling 
and even unpatriotic men. What I do claim stren^ 
ously is that much remains to be done. Scientific man- 
agement will fall short of success just so far as it fails 
to divide and apportion profits and savings equitably 
and fairly between itself and the other factor of produc- 
tion, labor. Otherwise the public is not served and the 



74 THE VITAL QUESTION 

advocates of scientific management convict themselves 
as representing a single party only. 

One advocate of scientific management has recently 
advised workmen to be promptly upon the spot and 
demand a fair share of the profits, and not repeat the 
mistakes of the past when great improvements were 
made in machinery. For one, I would like to be in- 
formed how workmen are going to grow in ability and 
strength in the future, with any hope of success in their 
demands for a fair division of the increased profits and 
savings, when the entire theory and practice of scien- 
tific management tend to disorganize' them and segre- 
gate them into grades and classes? Will it not be too 
late for them to secure recognition of their demands 
after the "standards" of work have been found and 
established, and when the strongest and most active of 
their number have been selected and practically bribed 
by increased wages to exert themselves to the utmost 
to establish those "standards"? We are told by Mr. 
Taylor, quoted above, that the "standards" are "en- 
forced." I am only using the language used by him 
and cannot therefore be accused of employing false 
terms and erroneous premises. 

After the standard has been ascertained, the work- 
men seeking employment must perform the work re- 
quired under it, or get no employment. He has no 
choice in the matter. In what position is he to demand 
an equitable share of the profits? If he secures a job 
he can do little in that direction acting as an individual. 
He must have the united assistance of his craft. Or- 
ganized labor would have to be stronger than ever 
under the new conditions to be of assistance to him. 
The danger threatened is that it would be weaker. 

Labor may well hesitate to endorse such a system. 
Its general adoption would, in my judgment, engender, 
an industrial war between labor and capital more bitter 
and intense than any in the past. Let those who pose 



THE VITAL QUESTION 75 

as friends of the public cease to advise labor to wait 
and demand rights after they are appropriated. The 
best time to represent the public is before, and not 
after, the wrong has been done. Let such men appear 
before the owners of industries and urge them to adopt 
scientific co-operation instead of cold and unsympa- 
thetic scientific management. Tell them to pay a little 
more consideration to the welfare of the human souls 
in their charge, to be a little more altruistic towards 
their employees and a little more generous in permit- 
ting them to partake of the fruit of their mutual efforts. 

It is deplorable that modern industrial methods have 
so nearly destroyed the friendly and personal relation- 
ship that formerly existed between employer and em- 
ployee. If scientific management has a tendency to 
widen still more this breach between employer ind 
employee, how important does it become for the owner, 
whether an individual or a corporation, to favor some 
other policy that will foster amity and harmony, and 
not continued and intensified warfare between em- 
ployer and employees! 

Scientific management as at present conceived and 
selfishly applied cannot conduce to the permanent and 
general welfare of workmen and their families. It 
must be more generously applied and vastly more com- 
prehensive. It must embrace not only the improved 
welfare of labor and capital devoted to a particular in- 
dustry, but also the improved welfare of all labor and 
all legitimate capital devoted to all industry. To be of 
permanent value it must do this, or, by concentrating 
capital, create an industrial tyranny which may for a 
time wield tremendous power, but which in the end "as 
sure as night follows the day" will cause its own de- 
struction and inflict terrible and widespread disaster 
upon labor and the public. 

No doubt a lamentable waste of energy obtains in 
all industries caused by crude and antiquated methods, 



76 THE VITAL QUESTION 

illustrated in the unnecessary motions for ages used in 
laying bricks, and the very small percentage of the 
latent force of coal that finally appears in the electric 
light, or in the work of the engine. It is, indeed, of 
great importance that this tremendous waste through- 
out the industrial world should be reduced as much as 
possible by science and art, not alone for the benefit 
of certain individuals, but for that of the entire com- 
munity. Yet, are there not other kinds of waste which 
in the natural order of things, or, we may say, in the 
scientific order of things, ought first to be dealt with 
and eliminated? Imagine, if you can, because it is well- 
nigh impossible to find figures enough to express it, 
the oceans and oceans of watered capital that have 
been poured into our railroads, telephone and telegraph 
companies, electric light and gas companies, other pub- 
lic utility companies, and the thousands of incorporated 
trusts, mines and commercial enterprises. Upon this 
vast aggregate of fictitious capital, represented in 
stocks and bonds, interest and dividends have to be 
paid. They have to come out of labor's legitimate 
share of earnings. They can come from no other 
source. I am not arguing that legitimate capital is not 
entitled to fair returns. Far from it, although I will 
affirm that even legitimate capital should get its re- 
turns by co-operating with labor. Otherwise, it is 
something else. It is mere inanimate wealth or stored- 
up product of past capital and labor. If this is true of 
legitimate capital, how wicked it is that labor, human 
beings, should be compelled by the possessors of capi- 
tal created only by the printing press to contribute 
from their rightful wages enough to pay unearned and 
unjust interest upon the many billions of fictitious cap- 
ital in the country! I say that this monstrous waste 
and tax upon labor should first be removed before we 
seriously discuss questions of increasing the efficiency 
of labor. 



THE VITAL QUESTION Jj 

If the general result of scientific management should 
be to advance a few workmen and degrade the vast 
majority of them, or, at least, grade them with military 
precision, and subject them to military discipline, or 
classify them as various machines and thus consign 
them to hopeless and permanent places, a great waste 
and not a great saving would be made to labor as a 
whole and a consequent injury to the public welfare. 
To deprive men of industrial liberty and independence 
to choose occupations, making them only pawns to be 
moved by others, would be to render them powerless 
to act politically against monopoly and special privilege 
wherever enthroned. The strong would only grow 
stronger and the weak weaker. The loss to the aver- 
age citizen would be inestimable. The increase in 
wages which might be grudgingly doled out to "en- 
forced efficiency" would be expended many times over 
in enforced idleness in old age, or enforced sickness. 
The unfortunate and inefficient would be industrial 
outcasts, or camp followers, and sure to become public 
charges. 

Scientific management might be of advantage to 
workmen who are ready to acknowledge that they are 
wards, requiring guardianship, and are incapable of or- 
ganizing and securing an equitable part of the wealth 
they produce. How can men expect to obtain the rea- 
sonable comforts of life for themselves and their fami- 
lies, if they surrender or permit to be taken from them 
by any refined system, no matter how attractively it 
may be clothed in language, the sacred rights and op- 
portunity to pursue happiness and prosperity guaran- 
teed by our fundamental laws? 

Scientific management does not and cannot indi- 
vidualize workmen. It can only tend to specialize 
them into mere machines and discourage invention and 
mental action. They would become more subservient 
and manageable under it. Otherwise, the whole scheme 



78 THE VITAL QUESTION 

would fail. Employees must stand ever ready strictly 
and promptly to obey all orders, "to do or die and not 
to reason why." In other words, they are literally in- 
dustrial soldiers. Do not take my word for this, but 
read what an admirer of the system says in the Review 
of Reviews for March, 191 1: "The planning depart- 
ment is to the business house what the staff is to the 
army, ... in which the soldiers of the line do the 
actual fighting." Mr. Emerson, an authority on the 
subject, in his book, Efficiency, page 69, uses this gen- 
tle language: "The member of the line, whether in 
church, state, army or navy, must obey blindly and im- 
plicitly." It is not strange that a writer who so 
idealizes and nearly deifies efficiency and scientific man- 
agement as this one does, should mix the gentle vir- 
tues of religion with the stern, harsh and relentless 
realities of military discipline. 

Let me quote again from this same Emerson. He 
writes in the same work, page 90: ''As a general pro- 
ductive proposition, there is no difference between a 
man and a machine," and on page 63, "There is no 
logical difference between money spent on materials 
and money spent on labor. A brick wall is a combina- 
tion of labor and materials. Every issue of materials, 
every issue of labor should be standardized in advance 
and checked; the same system of accounting and dis- 
tribution should be used for both labor and material." 
If this is not putting labor and commodities on the 
same basis and subjecting them to the same unfeeling 
laws, what is? We might well exclaim that at last 
under scientific management monopoly and special 
privilege are "smoked out" and forced into the open. 

On page 164 of Mr. Emerson's book we find these 
soft words of consolation: "Let each man work with 
the reliability of a steam valve, yet with the joy of a 
hunting dog and the inspiration of an artist," and he 
might have added what he said on page 19, that men 



THE VITAL QUESTION 79 

"earned" three times as much under scientific manage- 
ment as before. Note the word "earned" used by him, 
and his statement on page 20 that the men increased 
output in handling iron 500% and received only 69%' 
in wages. The hunting dog that would be overjoyed, 
or the artist inspired anew over this munificent division 
of amount "earned," should be pre-empted by some 
museum to be exhibited after death. 

One more quotation from Mr. Emerson, page 147, 
"If the efficient men are appreciated and rewarded at 
their true value, if the inefficient are allowed automati- 
cally to eliminate themselves, an esprit-de-corps is de- 
veloped that will make the working shop force as active 
and powerful an aggregation as a football or baseball 
team." How beautiful! But how about the crowds 
outside the grounds who have no money to see the 
game? They represent those who have been automati- 
cally eliminated, who cannot bat or run bases, or buck 
the centre or even look on. They certainly do not 
have the "joy of a hunting dog and the inspiration of 
the artist." We might add, however, that some dogs 
have no joy, and some artists no inspiration, and live in 
back alleys and garrets and have little or no food. 

It is refreshing and fortifies our position to have the 
advocates of this new system, unconsciously perhaps, 
supply us with such apt and cogent arguments and 
illustrations against themselves. Yet that must be in- 
evitable if we have truth and justice on our side. 

In the face of the untenable, unjust and inhuman at- 
titude of these advocates, it cannot be possible that 
workmen will be ambitious to become "soldiers of the 
line" in the industrial army, knowing nothing of the 
plan of campaign, what they are to do beforehand, and 
whither they are marching. They cannot consent to 
be uninformed of the uses to which their muscles are 
to be put by a superior directing and managing power, 
to allow their mental powers to become dwarfed and 



80 THE VITAL QUESTION 

atrophied by reason of disuse, and submerge their indi- 
viduality. Should they become so blind and thought- 
less, then let them throw their hats high in air for scien- 
tific management, and cast their fortunes and the for- 
tunes of their children and all chances to secure equal 
opportunity for complete development for them and 
themselves, as spoils into the luxurious laps of their 
industrial generals, who will be more empowered than 
even now, vicariously to vote for labor in a scientific 
manner and more scientifically to manage the legisla- 
tion of state and nation in the interests of special privi- 
lege. 

Eternal vigilance is the price of industrial liberty, as 
well as the price of political liberty. Industrial vigi- 
lance cannot be effectively, and to borrow a term from 
our scientific management friends, so "efficiently" ex- 
ercised by labor unless it be thoroughly organized. The 
reason why labor has accomplished so much in the past 
is because it has been organized. The reason why it 
has accomplished so little is because it has not been 
sufficiently organized, and sufficiently interested in 
great industrial and economic questions that not only 
directly but indirectly affect the earnings and the re- 
wards of labor. It is natural for organized labor con- 
stantly to seek shorter hours and higher wages, but it 
ought not to lose sight of the causes that lead to 
shorter hours and higher wages, or those that prevent 
them. These are often beyond the control of the indi- 
vidual employer. He, like the individual employee, is 
subject to certain political and industrial conditions 
that are purely artificial, over which he has little con- 
trol and concerning the remedy of which he often acts 
less intelligently than labor itself. 

Therefore, labor should be cautious about yielding to 
the fascinations of a new invention designed by those 
who classify human beings with brick walls and ma- 
chines. 



THE VITAL QUESTION 81 

Organize, organize, organize, should be the persist- 
ent and ever present watchword of labor. It should 
jealously at all times resist all insidious attempts of 
outside foes and their emissaries to undermine and 
disintegrate its forces. It should continuously strive 
to enlist new recruits until it shall have enrolled in its 
ranks approximately all that are eligible. It should 
adopt, not an "enforced" standard, but a standard vol- 
untarily chosen by its free and independent members, 
upon which should be emblazoned letters of imperish- 
able gold: Self-Management, a Fair Opportunity and 
no Delegated Privileges. 

It has long been my belief that a complete and prac- 
tically perfect organization of labor means its peaceful 
emancipation. When that time arrives, and its arrival 
is by no means visionary or improbable, and the con- 
stant hope of beholding it should be the inspiration of 
labor and urge it ever onward, then will be achieved 
the great victory and "consummation devoutly to be 
wished," and which cannot be attained in any other way 
— real and actual co-operation between the two great 
factors of wealth, labor and capital, each directed and 
scientifically managed, if you please, by justice and wis- 
dom. 

The reason for this is sound and indisputable, for 
when labor's army is complete, with no mercenaries or 
guerrillas misrepresenting it from within and without, 
it can effect a natural and economic alliance with legit- 
imate capital. These combined, or co-operating forces, 
will be invincible, and monopoly, special privilege, and 
all enemies of true industrial and social welfare will 
surrender to them. 

This successful alliance between labor and capital 
would be inevitable with complete organization of 
labor. Both would be compelled to accept terms of 
everlasting peace. These terms would have to be fair 
and equitable to both sides. Neither could go on with- 



g 2 THE VITAL QUESTION 

out the other. In this way only can labor be emanci- 
pated and secure what belongs to it. The same is true 
of moderate capital, that is struggling outside the 
breastworks of monopoly and special privilege. 

The discord now often existing between labor and 
capital is unnatural. Capital is timidly conservative or 
takes shelter behind special privilege of various kinds. 
Capital so entrenched is much more easily organized 
than labor possibly can be, which quite fully explains 
the present disadvantage of labor. Labor cannot ally 
itself with special privilege. It must, therefore, be 
completely self-reliant, self-governing, and self-manag- 
ing, jealous of all outside interference. This will not 
narrow or specialize its members and consign them 
and their children hopelessly to a particular class, but 
make them better workmen and better citizens with 
greater independence and intelligence to deal with all 
questions which intimately concern them. 

Then, let labor in the name of justice and humanity 
conduct in earnest the campaign that is crying out to be 
conducted. Let the great army of organized labor 
with steady and unfaltering step march boldly against 
special privilege wherever it has enthroned itself upon 
the property and rights that belong to all the people. 
Let labor profit by any mistakes of the past and ag- 
gressively assume the championship of political and 
economic liberty as well as of industrial liberty. Com- 
pel legitimate capital to sever its connection with 
special privilege and unite with its natural helpmeet, 
labor, and lift humanity and civilization to a plane yet 
scarcely dreamed of. 

The present combination of inflated and fictitious 
capital and special privilege is far too powerful and is 
already threatening the industrial, social and political 
welfare of the nation itself. This combination, like 
Carthage of old, must be destroyed. It plays with 
loaded dice and wins by devices that are unfair, un- 



THE VITAL QUESTION 83 

sportsmanlike and wicked, even according to the ethics 
of the street urchin. 

Special privilege must be driven out of politics. It 
must also be driven out of private industry. It must 
cease to disturb the amity that should exist between 
labor and capital. What social force, or indeed what 
force, political or other, in the community can do more 
in this direction than organized labor? Will it rise to 
the occasion? 

Sometimes I think that organized labor is strangely 
oblivious to its great latent powers and responsibilities. 
It is like a strong man asleep, a kind of Joshua, who 
upon awakening might command the industrial sun 
the political moon to stand still, or indeed, direct their 
courses in harmony with the spirit of our fundamental 
laws and institutions. This indifference of organized 
labor to real and possible political and economic re- 
forms is the most stupendous blunder of the times. Its 
inactivity has proven the opportunity of the enemies of 
popular government, and well have they improved the 
opportunity. 

Upon the future action of organized labor depends 
its fate and the just and equitable settlement of impor- 
tant public issues now too long deferred. It is un- 
doubtedly approaching a crisis in its career. Its ene- 
mies, open and secret, are alert, well equipped and thor- 
oughly organized, with expert generals and staffs sci- 
entifically managed, ever ready and watchful to raise 
false issues and take advantage of any misstep or in- 
discreet action of any of its leaders. 

One of two things will certainly happen in the not 
distant future. Organized labor will either be weak- 
ened, divided and then conquered by an oligarchy of 
scientific management allied with special privilege, or 
its membership will be greatly augmented and wield 
vastly increased power, not only in the industrial world, 
but also in the political and economic worlds. Which 



g 4 THE VITAL QUESTION 

will happen, new life, new ideals and new inspiration 
for united labor, or disintegration and surrender? The 
importance of this question is so tremendous as to 
make us pause when we consider the awful and possi- 
ble effects of the answer to present and future genera- 
tions. Will organized labor, I repeat, rise to the great 
emergency? Will it succeed in the great struggle for 
self-preservation? If it should find the contest too diffi- 
cult — what then? I leave the arrogant monopolists and 
their scientific satellites, with no industrial recall, initia- 
tive or referendum to quality their actions, to answer. 

It is not fair under modern ideas of fairness, that the 
arbitrary control of any department of human activity 
— I do not refer to pure sciences like mathematics, 
chemistry or astronomy — should be reposed in the 
hands of any men or class of men that represent but 
one side. Scientific management, as at present ex- 
pounded, is industrial government without industrial 
representation of its subjects. In these artificial times, 
employees have an equitable interest of some kind in 
the industry to which they have devoted, it may be, the 
best years of their lives. They should have a voice oi 
some kind in the government of that industry, espe- 
cially if it is based on special privilege, and should not 
in their old age when they can no longer keep the pace 
set by younger and stronger men, be cast ruthlessly, 
aside and thrown upon a human junk heap. If you 
think these words strong and extravagant, remember 
that the wrong is done not by men as men, for men are 
supposed to have consciences, but by a thing that does 
not breathe and does not possess immortality — a soul- 
less corporation, founded, it may be, upon special privi- 
lege, a mere creature of the people's government, 
which, as the creator, has the power to command it in 
tones of thunder not to trample in the dust the rights 
of labor and the rights of God's creatures. Artificial 
combinations, the mere creatures of man, no matter 



THE VITAL QUESTION 85 

how expert their mathematicians and engineers may 
be, have no right tc invent and enforce a scheme for 
the unjust and arbitrary control of man made in the 
image of God. In the Scriptures, we are told that 
"The meek shall inherit the earth." That surely can- 
not mean that engineers, as the tools of inanimate cor- 
porations, are to appropriate unto themselves the earth 
and the title thereof and establish rules of conduct for 
"all that tread the globe." The industrious and the 
lowly should have some voice in framing these rules, or 
at least in adopting or rejecting them. A contract has 
two sides and greater, not less, consideration should be 
granted under the laws to the rights of a natural person 
than to those of an unnatural person or artificial thing, 
a corporation possibly with special privileges, made 
and, in fact, controllable by the natural person himself. 

Of course, we must do more than to criticise scien- 
tific management. It would be folly to assert that no 
improvements in the methods of modern industry 
as applied to machines and employees are possible, 
but employees must not be coerced and cajoled "one 
at a time" into adopting "enforced standards" and 
"enforced co-operation" — expressions coined and used 
by the friends themselves of scientific management. 
Employees must have some chance to exercise their 
reason and their volition, especially when opposed 
by those who do not act in their individual capacity but 
who conceal themselves behind the ramparts and pro- 
tecting walls of corporations and special privilege. 

It is true that government by experts chosen by a 
small governing body is now advocated by many 
thoughtful and public-spirited men and women in 
American cities. That idea standing alone would be 
indefensible. It would in fact be a government by the 
few and would be in form an aristocracy. But the 
members of the governing body are chosen by direct 
nominations and elections, and subject to the recall, 



86 THE VITAL QUESTION 

initiative and referendum of the citizens. Therefore, 
the number of the members of the governing body, in 
cities for example, becomes unessential, because such 
members are at all times directly accountable for their 
acts to the sovereign voters who elected them, and 
they constitute strictly and literally a popular govern- 
ment. 

So, I argue, in the industrial government, particu- 
larly of corporations, the employees should have some- 
thing to say. Under scientific management, as advo- 
cated, at present, the employer has everything to say. 
He, or rather it, is not subject to any industrial recall 
or referendum, and has arrogated to himself or itself, 
all control of the initiative. Perhaps there is no harm 
in letting the employer have the initiative and not be 
subject to a recall, but it would seem just, equitable 
and fair that the employee should have some kind of a 
referendum or qualifying veto vote or voice concerning 
the methods and standards under which he is to work 

At first thought it may seem difficult fully to sug- 
gest how this should be done, but as I said above, cor- 
porations are the creatures of the state and subject for 
the continuance of their lives, and the manner of their 
living, to the pleasure of the state. It would no doubt 
be sufficient first to attempt to control only corpora- 
tions in this respect, as, under modern conditions, in- 
dustries which injuriously affect the welfare of great 
bodies of employees are largely conducted by corpora- 
tions, and corporations, indeed, often based upon pub- 
lic property and public franchises. 

If this application of the referendum to industry is 
found to be too difficult to work out under the law, the 
success of which I think depends solely upon public 
opinion, then the only recourse left to employees is to 
organize more completely and effectively than they 
have ever done before, and put themselves in a position 
to demand by some plan of referendum the submission 






THE VITAL QUESTION 87 

of standards and methods initiated by the employer to 
them, or to some tribunal in which they have a voice. 
The disappearance of organized labor, under modern 
conditions or even its undermining by an extraneous 
force of any kind, would be a calamity too tragic and 
pathetic, even for thought. Therefore, in conclusion, I 
most strongly urge the members of organized labor, to 
take a keener interest than ever before in the great 
movement for social and political justice, that is now 
spreading so rapidly throughout the world for the per- 
manent comfort and prosperity of struggling men and 
women. 



CHAPTER VII. 
Woman Suffrage. 

"The men have done fairly well in matters of gov- 
ernment, and we think that they properly represent us." 

Such were the words recently spoken to the writer 
by an attendant at the local headquarters of the anti- 
suffragists. 

If those words are true, there should be no further 
agitation for woman suffrage. If they are not true, then 
the question of woman suffrage becomes of the utmost 
importance, and entitled to the most careful considera- 
tion by all men, as well as all women, who are inter- 
ested in the political and economic welfare of the nation. 

If the position of the auti-suffragists is sound, that 
politics is but modified warfare, and require for its 
conduct the superior physical force of men, that equal 
suffrage means that women will be compelled to per- 
form the most heavy and dangerous manual labor, that 
they must become corrupt politicians, neglect their do- 
mestic duties and generally abandon those graces and 
refinements which distinguish them from the sterner 
sex, then let women suffragists close their headquarters, 
destroy their presses, burn their literature, erect statues 
to Hercules, and seek the enforced seclusion of women 
of many inferior peoples. 

The anti-suffragists quite feelingly insist in their pub- 
lic utterances, far from the fireside and the cradle from 
which they think all other women should not wander, 
that only a small part of the women indeed, are asking 
for the ballot and would not use it if granted to them. 

This claim is not based upon fact and is easily dis- 
proved by consulting many election returns. Were it 



THE VITAL QUESTION 89 

true it would mean nothing and does not touch the 
merits of the issue involved, and has not the remotest 
relation to the subjects upon which women might be 
required to vote, or that their present condition is not 
susceptible of much improvement, or that they are satis- 
fied with their present status. Many women may be 
uninformed concerning the benefit that would follow the 
adoption of woman suffrage. Such may blindly leave 
their political and economic welfare in the hands of the 
men, be fortunately situated and totally oblivious or 
indifferent to the welfare of their sisters and of hu- 
manity in general. 

By way of illustration, I might refer to the condi- 
tion of the culinary workers in many of the hotels, 
clubs and restaurants of American cities. For one, I 
know that their industrial condition is bad almost be- 
yond description and belief. They are compelled in 
very many instances to work unconscionably long hours 
every day in the week and every week in the year, for 
miserably low wages and in exceedingly unsanitary 
surroundings. They are far from sure of long employ- 
ment, and are practically enslaved by those employed 
over them, who possess autocratic power to grant them 
mere subsistence or drive them into literal starvation. 

Now, if such conditions actually obtain among the 
culinary workers, and no protest is sent forth by them 
against their conditions, and if they do not adequately 
organize from timidity or even from ignorance of their 
latent strength, or from demoralization from any cause 
fail to publish their wrongs to the outside world, would 
the anti-suffragists be justified in claiming that because 
they did not hear the complaints of a large number of 
culinary workers of their sufferings, there was, there- 
fore, nothing wrong and nothing to be done, and that 
those workers themselves were not interested in and 
would take no interest in a well directed and efficient 
organization to improve their welfare? 



90 THE VITAL QUESTION 

So much for the minority argument of the anti- 
suffragists based upon the pretended indifference and 
failure of women to express themselves upon the mat- 
ter of equal suffrage. 

As far as the writer has observed, the anti-suffra- 
gists as a class are not in harmony with our democratic 
ideals of government. They are would-be aristocrats in 
intent and purpose. They are modern exponents of 
the obsolete notion that a part of the community, 
whether a king or an oligarchy, is divinely delegated 
to rule the rest. They are conservatives of conserva- 
tives, standpatters of standpatters, are perfectly satis- 
fied with things as they are, and are evidently disciples 
of the philosophy which teaches that "whatever is, is 
right." As a matter of fact, they are behind the times 
and are but the belated advocates of the long since ex- 
ploded doctrine of hisses faire. They are largely 
represented in the political and economic world by those 
men who enjoy special privilege and who, by almost 
limitless exploitation of the people and the people's 
government, have prospered and grown wealthy and 
powerful. 

Does not the public appearance of anti-suffragists 
so inconsistent with the normal duties of women, as de- 
fined by them, in reality demonstrate the fallacy of their 
own position, and that it is a mistake on their part to 
leave so much of the administration of government to 
their male representatives, who encourage them to as- 
sume an attitude in public which they themselves do not 
dare to assume, and who, in the meantime, diplomati- 
cally take refuge behind the skirts of anti-suffragists? 

All the arguments which the anti-suffragists ad- 
vance against woman suffrage as being allied with so- 
cialism, anarchy, and feminism are absolutely untenable 
and have no relation to the main subject under consid- 
eration. The policies, which women under equal suf- 
frage may advocate, no doubt will resemble in kind and 



THE VITAL QUESTION 91 

variety those advocated more or less fervently by men. 
It is far more important to know how they will deal 
with them. Will their action be better or worse than 
that of the men? If women, as anti-suffragists would 
have us believe, are naturally less intelligent than men, 
more fickle, more deceitful and more susceptible to flat- 
tery than their brothers, then indeed, we must concede 
that disastrous results would certainly follow the adop- 
tion of woman suffrage. 

If the men have performed their political duties as 
well as they could be performed under present condi- 
tions, then equal suffrage will be no improvement. Who 
sincerely believes, however, that male government has 
produced the best attainable results, or that it cannot be 
greatly improved in the near future, either by men alone 
or by men and women in co-operation? Is any one bold 
enough, except anti-suffragists and the possessors of 
special privileges, to claim that present political and 
economic conditions are satisfactory and not capable of 
improvement ? 

When billions of money are each year unjustly ex- 
acted by monopoly and special privilege from our people 
as toll for using their own property, as exemplified in 
the business of quasi-public corporations, to pay divi- 
dends and interest upon oceans of watered stocks and 
bonds, and as a direct consequence the concentration of 
wealth and opportunity in comparatively few hands, and 
when the employment of young children is permitted in 
our industries and the physical well-being of future gen- 
erations is thereby being threatened, it cannot in truth 
be said that the affairs of government are being suc- 
cessfully administered, unless the gratification of avarice 
and selfishness at the expense of struggling humanity 
may be said to be successful and idealistic. 

The anti-suffragists, at least those of them who are 
well meaning and possibly misguided and misinformed, 
would do well to investigate the evil forces in the com- 



g 2 THE VITAL QUESTION 

munity that are opposed to the extension of woman suf- 
frage, and the means which are employed to prevent it, 
and also to decide whether they really desire to be iden- 
tified and affiliated with those forces. 

In further discussing the merits of woman suffrage 
I would like to devote a little space to the topic, the 
superiority of either sex to perform the ordinary func- 
tions of government. Each is so different from the other 
in many natural characteristics that it would be hardly 
fair to claim absolute superiority for either in this re- 
gard. Still it might not be difficult, even aside from a 
chivalric point of view, to prove that woman is superior 
to man in the possession of a larger number of excellent 
characteristics and virtues, which especially differen- 
tiates her from him. In evidence of the possible supe- 
riority of woman over man, or at least that she is a more 
important subject than he is, it might be well to remind 
the reader that it requires many more books and treat- 
ises to describe and deal with problems relating to her. 
In the Boston Public Library, for example, an entire 
alcove is devoted to books on woman, and none to works 
on man as such. It takes seven times as many index 
cards and seven times as many boxes containing index 
cards in that library to furnish the titles only of books 
and pamphlets on woman as those on man. 

If this evidence is not conclusive of a certain supe- 
riority of woman, it surely affords some food for 
speculation. 

In warlike, as well as in peaceful pursuits, which de- 
mand great physical strength the man may be said to be 
superior to woman. In peaceful pursuits, generally 
speaking, the woman is certainly equal to if not supe- 
rior to man. In primitive times the women per- 
formed practically all work, domestic, agricultural, the 
procuring of food and clothing — in fine, everything ex- 
cept the making of implements of war and the chase, 
and engaging in actual warfare. Even in times of war 



THE VITAL QUESTION 93 

she renders services that may fairly be deemed superior 
to those rendered by man. His principal occupation at 
such times is in destroying precious lives and valuable 
property. The woman nurses the sick and the wounded 
of both combatants, and tempers the horrors of barba- 
rous murder and rapine with the gentleness of peace. 

In peaceful vocations, such as domestic, social, char- 
itable and religious work, her superiority over man needs 
no proof. 

To discuss the political equality of the two sexes, 
aside from all questions of natural superiority of either, 
seems entirely superfluous, because it has been proven 
a thousand times by able writers and speakers. It is no 
longer debatable that women are people, and should not 
be classified with incompetent and undesirable citizens. 

The subject which I wish particularly to treat and 
emphasize, is woman and her power — the power to as- 
sist in uplifting humanity. This power nature has 
bountifully bestowed upon womankind. Up to the pres- 
ent time its full and complete exercise has been impeded 
by artificial barriers which must be removed. 

In writing of woman and her power I am not going 
to refer to her power as a great ruler although there 
have been many great female rulers in history. Neither 
am I going to refer to her power in science and mathe- 
matics, although there have been) many celebrated 
women scientists and mathematicians ; nor to her power 
as an artist of the first rank in poetry, painting, sculp- 
ture, literature, music and the drama, for her brilliant 
successes in each of these arts are well recognized; nor 
to her extraordinary power in social welfare work and 
in her effective efforts to secure justice for the indus- 
trially unfortunate; nor to her power, though gentle in 
its ministrations, to the sick and wounded in peace as 
well as in war, nor lastly to her still greater power and 
influence as a mother and a wife in the home. 

I desire rather to refer to woman and her latent and 



94 THE VITAL QUESTION 

hitherto inadequately used power to render great and 
almost incalculable service to humanity, mankind as 
well as womankind. Instead of women pleading with 
men to grant them equal political and social rights, the 
men should cry unto them, as Caesar unto Cassius, 
''Help me, or I sink." Men need women's assistance in 
politics and in economics, even more than women need 
their assistance. Where men have failed in the fields of 
legislation, women possess the power and the virtues to 
succeed. Beyond question, men have failed to establish 
extensively anywhere on earth in all history even for 
themselves a real and genuine popular government. 
Even that great problem cannot be solved by the terrible 
and destructive war now pending. Only a firm and 
hoped for permanent foundation can be made up'pn 
which such a real and genuine structure of popular 
government may be erected. Men have made this at- 
tempt many times with the teaching of the Sermon on 
the Mount shining before their very eyes, and have 
miserably failed, except approximately, and within very 
limited and restricted areas. 

The little, that they have actually accomplished in 
this direction, serves to indicate the great service to 
humanity that they might have rendered in the past, had 
they been true to the most common and instinctive 
ideals of woman. 

Until recent times, woman has apparently been un- 
conscious of her great power to serve the state, as she 
has served the church. She has always been content to 
excel the men in observing only the first great com- 
mandment. In the future she must employ her power tc 
compel the men to co-operate with her in a more gen- 
eral and literal observance of the second great com- 
mandment, to love our neighbors as ourselves, and by 
actual and visible demonstration and example teach 
others just how this can be done. 

In the days that are to come this great truth must 



THE VITAL QUESTION 95 

not only be preached, but must be reduced to concrete 
realization. 

The mere right to vote will not alone enable women 
to accomplish this result any more than it has the men. 
The obtaining of equal political rights by women is not 
an end. It would indeed be but a beginning. They 
would then have to prepare themselves and seek in- 
formation concerning the political journey they were 
about to undertake, in order to avoid errors in trains and 
destination. 

Men acting alone in the administration of govern- 
ment, I repeat, have signally failed. They have not 
reasonably succeeded in establishing a true rule by the 
people, or rather by one half of the people, their own sex. 
Under the domination of men, special privilege, the gov- 
ernment by the few, the iniquitous exploitation of the 
weaker of their own sex as well as members of the 
other, the concentration of wealth and opportunity, caus- 
ing unemployment on every hand, have all been permitted 
to flourish without proper restraint until the theories of 
liberty and equality, which inspired the founders of our 
government, are in imminent danger of being shattered. 
Unless a halt is soon called in our present political and 
economic debauchery, we and our children will be com- 
pelled to repeal many of the laws now upon the statute 
books, and enact new ones more in conformity with 
modern conditions wrought by modern inventions and 
methods. 

Hence, it is impossible to overestimate the grave 
responsibility of women who may obtain equal surirage. 
Upon them may fall the solution of important political 
and economic problems, which, as yet, they may not have 
sufficiently considered. Wherein men have failed in 
providing adequately just and humane laws, the women 
must succeed. If they fail, all progress supposed to be 
the fruit of the doctrine of popular rule will be stopped 
and special privilege, allied with militarism, or, as its 



96 THE VITAL QUESTION 

sole successor, will be more strongly entrenched than 
ever before. 

The solution of these important problems will de- 
mand the aid of woman's natural power and willingness 
to render sympathetic, just and even sentimental service 
to the unfortunate and worthy members of society of 
both sexes — the very power and willingness in which she 
is divinely superior to men. This great power to render 
political service to mankind, and womankind, is ap- 
parently scarcely known or dreamed of by her. Men 
are certainly densely ignorant of it, or are intentionally 
oppressing her, and preventing its natural exercise and 
expression. 

In order that the average woman may know just 
what use to make of the ballot after she has secured it, 
much remains to be said and done. If men, after gen- 
erations, are uninformed and incapable of understanding 
the fundamental social and political questions which 
confront us, and are able to suggest only crude and 
superficial solutions of those questions, it may be safe 
to assume that women, notwithstanding their intuitive 
and alert mentality, without considerable study and po- 
litical experience will be insufficiently prepared to make 
the most expedient and efficient use of the suffrage. 
Therefore, they must be better equipped to discharge 
civic and political duties than men in general have 
shown themselves to be, and they should at once, by 
self-education, or otherwise, prepare themselves so that 
when the actual test comes, they may prove themselves 
not only equal, but superior, to the men in facing the 
solution of great political and social welfare questions. 

Thus equipped under the guiding influence of their 
superior and instinctive understanding of justice and 
equality, the results to be achieved by them for humanity, 
in a comparatively brief period, ought to be far greater 
than these achieved by men alone in the past. It is only 
by the co-operation of educated and determined men and 



THE VITAL QUESTION 97 

women that we can repair the evils of past legislation. 
Yet, we should not dwell too much on the past and its 
mistakes. It is in the present or the future that we must 
live. As Goethe well expresses the idea, "There is no 
past that we need long return to, there is only the eter- 
nally new which is formed out of enlarged elements of 
the past; and our genuine longing must always be pro- 
ductive for a new and better creation." 

The new problems for women to assist in solving 
will be the old problems over which men have flound- 
ered. These and the condition in which men, by their 
mistakes and indifference, have left many fundamental 
questions must be studied and understood by the women 
before taking any possible precipitate action. 

To assist in this study, it might be well, first, to 
learn what are the present so-called legal rights of 
women, as compared with those of men. In Massachu- 
setts, for example, although not yet a woman suffrage 
state, women have been tolerably well cared for by the 
men in respect to their legal rights as distinguished from 
their political rights. 

LEGAL RIGHTS OF WOMEN. 

In this state women have practically all the legal 
rights of men, and a few that men do not have. 

Each may solely hold and dispose of all kinds of 
property. 

Each may sue and be sued. 

Each may carry on business in separate name. 

Each possesses similar power to make a will sub- 
ject to certain rights of the other. 

The wife is especially favored against husband in 
separate support cases and in divorce proceedings. 

Work performed by wife outside of family is pre- 
sumed to be on her separate account. 

Non-resident married women living apart from their 



98 THE VITAL QUESTION 

husbands, for cause, can sell real estate in Massachusetts 
as though they were sole. 

Women are favored by many labor laws and their 
hours in mercantile and manufacturing establishments 
carefully regulated, especially in textile employment, 
in which they are not to be employed between 6 P. M. 
and 6 A. M. 

Women are also favored in stores and factories, in 
certain sanitary arrangements and comfort appliances. 

It must be conceded that the legal rights of woman 
in this state, and in many others, are an unfinished 
monument to the chivalry of the men in control of legis- 
lation, yet they are quite insignificant when we contem- 
plate the economic and social matters which pertain to 
her best welfare, as well as to that of the community 
itself, and which have been lamentably neglected by the 
men in the halls of legislation, in both the states and 
the nation. 

The most important rights or privileges to be con- 
ferred upon women are therefore political in their na- 
ture, for only with them would they be upon an equal 
footing with men. Should they then omit properly to 
exercise those rights, the blame would be theirs. If they 
then neglect to become well informed concerning correct 
economic and social remedies, little, if any, improvement 
would be observed in their industrial and political condi- 
tion. If they,, on the other hand, are careful to advo- 
cate the enactment of only safe and really conservative 
laws, they will be potent enough to destroy the power of 
monopoly and gain greater opportunity in the commer- 
cial and economic world, for both men and women, to 
employ more widely their respective talents. 

Special privilege and its baneful influences must be 
driven out of our political and economic life. Up to the 
present time men acting alone have shown themselves 
incapable or unwilling to do this. The female anti-suf- 
fragists are largely the wives or beneficiaries of those 



THE VITAL QUESTION 99 

who possess special privileges and would, if possible, 
perpetuate present conditions and obstruct the further 
progress of genuine popular government. 

Those women and their male friends who are striv- 
ing to secure equal suffrage, have indeed grave respon- 
sibilities which but increase in proportion to the increas- 
ing prospects of success. 

If women sincerely desire to obtain the full fruition 
of their power in the political and economic fields, which 
equal suffrage will give them, they must study and 
ponder well the subjects or questions which are referred 
to hereafter. 

The times are ripe for the enumeration of specific 
reforms, that must be considered and adopted by all 
citizens, men and women, fully determined to approxi- 
mate as nearly as practicable, under present deterrent 
conditions, a realization of those reforms and no longer 
to depend solely upon the advocacy of mere generalities 
that are greedily used for ornamenting party platforms 
by pretended friends of our institutions. 

An attempt is made to treat briefly in the present 
work the subjects or topics, which appear to the writer 
to relate to the most essential problems which newly 
enfranchised women as well as the men will be called 
upon to solve. 

The wicked wastefulness of capital, and the sinful 
and abusive exploitation of the labor of both men and 
women, should first be prevented before schemes for ex- 
acting greater speed and efficiency from wage-earners 
are invented. Economy in production is commendable, 
but the first savings should be the billions of money 
annually extorted from a patient and indulgent people 
to pay the dividends and interest upon fictitious capital 
and the people's own property. 

Upon the re-establishment of a normal relationship 
between the employer and employee, which would result 
from depriving special privilege of its power in the 



IOO THE VITAL QUESTION 

industrial and economic world, there would be far less 
reason for legislative interference in such relationship 
than at present. 

In order to advance the cause of economic and so- 
cial justice to the point to which it ought to be advanced, 
and discharge our full duty to humanity, it will demand 
the concerted political action of both men and women. 
"Useless each without the other," are words that are 
more truthfully applicable to the future co-operation of 
the man and the woman in public affairs than to their 
individual or domestic affairs. 

This concerted political action may be partisan or 
nonpartisan, but the most effective results can be se- 
cured through the national organization of those men 
and women who are determined to ameliorate the social 
and economic condition of struggling humanity. 

Equal suffrage may be only an instrument,, but 
placed in the hands of women reasonably equipped to 
perform conservative and just political service for the 
nation and the state, would afford them a promising 
opportunity to excel in conjunction with the men all 
political achievements attempted in the past by men act- 
ing alone. 



CHAPTER VIII. 
Additional Remedies. 

It is, of course, impossible to treat in detail within 
the scope of this work all the important questions or 
problems that present themselves for solution. The 
general problem of how to act so as to render the 
greatest service to the public is indeed stupendous be- 
cause it relates to a subject of great magnitude and 
complexity. Social science itself is no doubt a true 
and even an exact science, but we are too insufficiently in- 
formed concerning the data and causes, which influence 
all civil and social progress, fully to understand such a 
science. 

Unfortunately, no individuals and no school of indi- 
viduals are possessed of adequate knowledge of the 
springs of action of all past peoples to formulate dog- 
matically in a comprehensive and organized manner, a 
plan or code of action for a people who may be inspired 
with an ambition to attain the highest civilization. The 
most we can do is to proceed along paths that are more 
or less clearly defined, with well recognized general 
principles for our guide-posts. 

Therefore, many specific remedies or reforms which 
the reader may deem the most important and far- 
reaching may have been omitted or possibly too gently 
touched upon in the foregoing pages. Among such 
may be mentioned the following : Prohibition, the Tariff, 
the Money Question, Wages and Hours of Labor, Mini- 
mum Wages, Old Age Pensions, Workmen's Com- 
pensation Acts, Employees' Insurance, and various 
Social Welfare Reforms. 

Extensive treatises have been published upon many 
of these subjects which are well known and accessible 



102 THE VITAL QUESTION 

to anyone seeking detailed information concerning 
them. 

Many of these reforms are not fundamental, and 
would become of minor or of little importance after the 
removal of the evils which monopoly and special privi- 
lege have inflicted for ages, and which they now inflict 
with greater refinement than in the past upon both capi- 
tal and labor. 

For example, prohibition relates to social conditions, 
deplorable, cruel and wasteful as they are, but 
whether those conditions are a cause or a result of the 
injustice and tyranny of favoritism, or the violation of 
economic and social laws, are subjects which open wide 
the doors of debate. The settlement of the liquor traf- 
fic by its destruction would probably tend to clear the 
way for unquestionably great economic reforms. That 
its abolition alone would produce anything like an 
ideal state of society is indeed irrational. Still, public 
opinion may insist that prohibition shall be the first of 
the great issues to be taken up and disposed of. If so, 
it would not be the part of public-spirited citizens to 
interpose any obstacle, because the evils of the traffic 
aimed at, almost infinitely outweigh any of its possible 
benefits. 

Both the tariff and the money questions are in a fair 
way to be settled upon scientific bases, as they naturally 
should be settled. 

The questions of wages, hours of labor, profit shar- 
ing, old age pensions, industrial insurance, and the va- 
rious so-called social welfare reforms, important as 
they all are, would largely disappear or be self-regulat- 
ing, if a true and just relationship between the produc- 
tive factors of wealth were established by law as the 
result of enlightened and humane public opinion. 

If common justice .and equity should be made to pre- 
vail between the weak and the powerful, between mo- 
nopoly and those exploited by it, the people at large 



THE VITAL QUESTION 103 

would be in far less danger of being worried about the 
poor house and the winter of old age, and would secure 
vastly more leisure and opportunity for self-improve- 
ment and enjoyment of life than at present. Indus- 
trial and social conditions would change for the better, 
and tend to become normal, and citizens would have 
freedom to work and freedom to live and enjoy in much 
greater measure "protection against wrong," as liberty 
was once defined by an eminent writer of the past. 

If special privilege and the long line of resultant 
abuses which follow in its wake were driven from 
power, many artificial conditions would yield to normal 
and more just and equitable conditions, under which 
moderate capital and labor would be rejuvenated and 
prosperity would increase with leaps and bounds never 
before experienced and scarcely dreamed of in our na- 
tion. Much of the present and even recurrent distress 
and suffering among poor but willing people are caused 
by the prevailing false economic and industrial policies, 
promoted and supported by the greed and corruption 
of unpatriotic citizens. 

The present relative importance of economic and so- 
cial questions in the near future may be seriously dis- 
turbed by the war and its unforeseen and far-reaching 
results. On the other hand, much may be learned! 
from the war, and the unsuspected efficiency which the 
nations involved in the great struggle are sure to 
evince in the handling of public business, which in the 
past they have unwisely, in too many instances, dele- 
gated to private ownership and management. 

The wisest and most patriotic attitude for each one 
of us to assume, is to be at all times ready and prepared 
to render the best service he is capable of to advance 
the reforms or measures he deems most conducive to 
the public welfare. For the most effective results, all 
should aid in promoting and maintaining organizations 
whose cardinal aims and purposes are to increase indi- 
vidual opportunity, and to abolish special privilege. 



CHAPTER IX. 
Suggested Practical Plan of Action. 

As we have observed in the earlier part of this work, 
as an indispensable preliminary to the enactment into 
law of any progressive measures we may advocate, it 
is necessary first to enlist public opinion upon our side. 
To gain public opinion there must be widespread dis- 
cussion, and it is practically impossible to have effec- 
tive discussion unless it is conducted systematically 
and persistently. 

This cannot be properly done without some well di- 
gested plan or organization. Individuals working 
alone and independently can indeed do something; but 
no considerable number of citizens will or can act un- 
less organized. The organization of citizens in large 
and small bodies must be effected in some way. How 
can this be done becomes, therefore, of the very first 
importance. Political and legislative action will follow, 
as a matter of course, efficient organization. The or- 
ganization need not comprise all or indeed a majority 
of the citizens of any given locality. It should, how- 
ever, include in its membership as many of the citizens 
as possible, who are sincere thinkers and investigators 
of truth and justice and are known as interested in the 
public welfare. This does not mean that only persons 
of wealth, collegiate education and high social standing 
should be invited to join the organization, but all in- 
telligent citizens of both sexes, who are intent upon 
performing some service in improving the temporal 
welfare of their fellows, without interfering in the least 
with their spiritual or religious welfare. These two 



THE VITAL QUESTION 105 

kinds of welfare should indeed supplement and assist 
each other. 

The writer in order to aid the reader in the for- 
mation of a citizens' organization for the above purpose 
suggests the following plan or outline, which, of course, 
may be modified to meet local requirements: 



CONSTITUTION AND BY-LAWS 

of 

The People's Service League 

of 



ARTICLE I. 
Objects and Purposes. 

The People's Service League of has been 

formed to meet the imperative necessity for uniting 
those citizens in the community who believe that the 
time is ripe for genuine, and not pretended, popular gov- 
ernment, and for determined and intelligent action 
against special privilege and its unjust and baneful in- 
fluences. 

No public-spirited citizen should hesitate to join the 
League and openly advocate what he privately acknowl- 
edges to be right. Even his permanent personal and 
selfish interests prompt him to do this. 

Special privilege, or license to dictate laws, to appro- 
priate public property at nominal cost, and to charge 
the public for using its own property, has already too 
long fooled the people, restricted their opportunities 
and added enormously to their cost of living. It does 
not bear a just share of taxes, and by undue inflation 
and confessed private mismanagement on every hand, 
unblushingly seeks to extort ever increasing tribute 
from every citizen. 



io6 



THE VITAL QUESTION 



Special privilege or oligarchy of this character must 
be driven from power. Efficient popular government 
must be enthroned in its place. Careful and thorough 
organization of the people is absolutely demanded to 
secure this result. 

The founders of the People's Service League are 
fully aware that an efficient and progressive popular gov- 
ernment can be obtained only by a very intelligent, 
and above all, an actively interested electorate. 

The League intends to aid in the further information 
of the citizen upon some of the great questions of the 
day, by providing permanent headquarters for the 
League, a library of publications relating to the ob- 
jects of the League, a lecture bureau, the holding of 
social and public meetings, the dissemination of litera- 
ture and information concerning the above objects, and 
the establishment of local People's Service Leagues. 

It will, so far as possible, keep watch of the future at- 
tempts of public utility corporations and other forms 
of special privilege, to secure legislation hostile to the 
public welfare, and keep its members informed of the 
same, and as far as its funds may permit to prevent by 
legitimate means any such hostile legislation. 

The League is strictly non-partisan in its objects. 

Any citizen of either sex subscribing to the Consti- 
tution and Declaration of Principles of the League is 
eligible to membership. 



ARTICLE II. 

Declaration of Principles. 

We, as members of the People's Service League of 

do herebly heartily and sincerely endorse, 

and subscribe to, the following Declaration of Princi- 
ples of the League, and earnestly and faithfully pledge 
ourselves to do all in our power to hasten their adop- 
tion and incorporation into law. 



THE VITAL QUESTION 107 

i. The establishment of a real and genuine popular 
government in local, state and national affairs. 

2. The abolition of special privilege, and especially 
the owning and conducting of public business by pri- 
vate interests. 

3. The ultimate government ownership of all public 
utilities. 

4. In the meantime, we insist upon and demand the 
lowest possible rates consistent with the public service. 
Private ownership of public utilities has already proven 
a failure in its bold and unpatriotic efforts to get pos- 
session of public property for scarcely nothing and be- 
come the people's rulers and tax gatherers. 

5. Equable taxation to lighten the burdens of both 
labor and legitimate capital. 

We also favor direct legislation by the people, equal 
suffrage and [any other principles that it may be deemed 
advisable to adopt]. 



BY-LAWS. 

ARTICLE I. 

Name. 

The name of this organization shall be The People's 

Service League of , and its headquarters shall 

be in . 

ARTICLE II. 

Membership. 

The membership of the League shall be unlimited in 
number. Each member shall sign the Constitution 
and By-Laws, or a duly authorized copy thereof, and 
shall pledge himself or herself to support the same. 



108 THE VITAL QUESTION 

ARTICLE III. 
Officers and Their Duties. 

The officers of the League shall consist of a Presi- 
dent, a Secretary, Treasurer and an Executive Com- 
mittee of members, of which the President and 

Secretary shall be ex-officiis .members. 

All officers shall be chosen at the annual meeting of 
the League for one year. 

The President shall preside at all meetings of the 
League, and in his absence a temporary chairman may 
be chosen from the members present. 

The Secretary and Treasurer shall perform the 
duties usually performed by such officers and keep 
proper records of the proceedings of the League, and 
of all moneys received and expended by it. The Treas- 
urer may be required to furnish a sufficient bond for 
the performance of his duties to be approved by the 
Executive Committee. 

The Executive Committee shall have the general 
management of the affairs of the League under the di- 
rection of the League, and shall audit and authorize 
all expenditures of the League. 

Such additional officers and sub-committees may be 
chosen as the League, from time to time, may deter- 
mine. 

ARTICLE IV. 

Headquarters, Etc. 

The League, as soon as the funds of the League shall 
warrant, may secure and maintain suitable headquar- 
ters, provide a library of publications relating to the 
objects and purposes of the League for the benefit of 
its members, establish a lecture bureau for the benefit 
of the local People's Service League and others, hold 



THE VITAL QUESTION 109 

public meetings and entertainments, and generally to 
spread in the community information for public en- 
lightenment and improvement, consistent with the ob- 
jects and purposes of the League. 



ARTICLE V. 

Fees and Dues. 

The admission fee to membership of the League, 
which shall include the dues for the first year, shall be 
one dollar. The annual dues thereafter shall be one 
dollar, payable in advance. Failure to pay dues shall 
per se terminate membership, unless revived by vote 
of the Executive Committee. 

ARTICLE VI. 

Meetings. 

The regular annual meeting of the League shall be 
held on the first day of in each year, be- 
ginning with the first day of , 19 . 

Special meetings of the League may be called at any 
time by the President or by a majority of the Execu- 
tive Committee. 

The Executive Committee may determine the times 
of holding its own meetings. 

ARTICLE VII. 

Amendments. 

Any of the foregoing articles may be amended at any 
annual meeting of the League, or at any special meet- 
ing of the League duly called for that purpose, pro- 
vided that no change shall be made in the Declaration 
of Principles of the League at any meeting, except it 



HO THE VITAL QUESTION 

be made on a majority referendum vote of all its mem- 
bers voting thereon. 

Note — This form may be changed to meet local condi- 
tions and requirements. 



CHAPTER X. 

Conclusion. 

The criticism may be made that the present time, 
being one in which the nation is actively engaged in 
war, is inopportune for publishing the foregoing pages 
which largely have to do with conditions of peace. 
Upon the surface this criticism is fair and just, but in a 
broad, sense any attempt to assist the general move- 
ment of democracy against autocracy, or the govern- 
ment by the few claiming to act under divine authority 
or under special privileges granted by the state, is 
seasonable, whether we are at peace or war. The citizen 
who stands ready at all times to make such an attempt 
is a good patriot, as well as a servant of mankind. 

No greater service to our fellowmen can be rendered, 
than to do all that lies in our power at all times to 
make our republic so prosperous and potent, that no 
government hereafter based upon any other theory 
than our own, can hope to destroy ilt. Any other 
government founded upon the principles underlying 
and inspiring our government, would not desire to en- 
gage in war with us or to seek our destruction or to ac- 
quire dominion over us. Our assured success in the 
present conflict means that we must lead other nations 
in the near future in the formation of a world federa- 
tion for enforced peace, and in reducing to a minimum 
the submission of international disputes to the arbitra- 
ment of force, and the inhumanities and wastes of mod- 
ern warfare. 

The task of perfecting popular government so that it 
shall equal the efficiency of a refined and perfect au- 



112 THE VITAL QUESTION 

tocracy is, strictly speaking, theoretically impossible. 
The concentration of power in a single person who hap- 
pens to be great in heart and great in intellectual and 
administrative ability, may result in accomplishing 
things of magnitude more expeditiously and economi- 
cally, than can be accomplished by a government with 
powers, divided among many individuals. 

But there are, nevertheless, advantages which are 
inherent in popular governments that do not pertain to 
autocratic governments. While autocratic government 
may be superior in efficiency under a wise and humane 
autocrat, under a cruel and barbarous one, it may be ex- 
tremely inefficient and bring ultimate waste, ruin and di- 
saster upon the governed whose only refuge is revolution 
and the establishment of some form of popular govern- 
ment. 

If popular government, because of a division of au- 
thority, necessarily causes some delay and much waste 
in reaching results, it is absolutely more certain in the 
long run to reach right results, because it possesses 
within, itself the power to correct and chastise itself, 
without resorting to the violence of revolution. A rev- 
olution is inconceivable within any government that 
reasonably approximates popular government. It 
could not occur unless the government had passed into 
the hands of an autocracy or oligarchy. The people 
never rebel against themselves. It is only against 
their enemies -and opponents who would exploit them 
and deprive them of rational self-government. 

The wastes vtfhich are incident to popular govern- 
ment, and which exceed those of an efficient autocratic 
government and which may be atoned for and cor- 
rected as we have before observed, constitute the price 
which must be paid by those enjoying popular govern- 
ment. This is only saying that liberty is so precious 
and so valuable that we should be willing to pay any 
price to get it and to keep it. Good things cost much. 



THE VITAL QUESTION 113 

The best costs most. Liberty is worth any price de- 
manded, whether of treasure, or life itself. 

Doing all we can to secure liberty for ourselves and 
others, to live and have access to the opportunities that 
normally and justly belong to us as individuals, and in- 
cidentally striving to arouse our fellows to organize 
effectively for these ends, certainly should meet with en- 
couragement during war as during peace. The su- 
preme duty of the hour is to employ all the power we 
possess to secure a military victory for democracy, and 
our next important and urgent duty is to prepare for 
the enduring democracy that is sure to spread over the 
earth at the termination of the present inhuman, irra- 
tional and unavoidable clash of arms. Genuine popular 
government must be firmly, widely and permanently estab- 
lished. Usurped and indifferent popular government 
must disappear. This result can be accomplished in 
but one way, and that is, by a permanent organization 
of the people at all times alert and watchful of their 
true interests. Are American citizens equal to the 
task? They have been remiss in the past. Will they 
be more vigilant and more faithful in the future? The 
preservation and perpetuation of true democracy admit 
of but one answer. We must compel ourselves to be 
efficient in peace as well as in war. 

In war, all have sincerely joined in advocating inter- 
national or world democracy. In peace, let all as earn- 
estly join in advocating real and genuine internal, or na- 
tional democracy, and make our republic the true and 
permanent exemplar of a wise and beneficent civiliza- 
tion for all peoples. 

The End. 






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